Songbirds Cry
by amazoness23
Summary: It all went so wrong, so fast. Our mom fell into a coma and our dad went berserk, leaving my sister and I to fend for ourselves; to fend from our dad. When our unknown meta-genes start working, our lives changed. Someone finally heard our cries. Even though we learned to protect others with our powers, no one's ever protected us. If I could only see the day... Richard/OC Season 1
1. Prologue

**I decided to post this story today since it's Christmas Eve. This is my second fanfic so please no flames and enjoy the story!**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the cover image or anything DC Comics related. I only own the Henderson's, who will probably never be apart of the DC Universe. (This disclaimer is meant for all of the chapters in this fanfiction.)****

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><p>~?~<p>

"Once again the young… heroes interfere. So it is fortunate we have an operative, on the inside."

**Gotham City**

**September 6TH 9:32 a.m**

**Alexis' Pov**

"Alexis, get up! We have to get ready!" called my sister, Karie.

"I'll be up soon!" I croaked.

This was just like any other day. Karie would wake me up, I would sleep in a little longer, we get ready, get out of the house, then do or best to scavenge money, food, water, even clothes. Then again, life has been like this for the past 4 years now, it's not as if some miracle is going to happen, and change our lives for the better or worse. I remember that day so clearly; how Karie, dad, and I lost everything in one night.

~4 Years Ago~

"Mom, where are you going?" asked Karie, as she saw her mother getting ready to go somewhere.

"I'm going to put up election signs," she replied with a soft smile, "While I'm gone take care of Alexis."

Karie hesitated then replied, "Uh, mom?"

"Yes?"

"Just promise me… promise me that you're going to be okay. It's dark out, and you know how Gotham gets at night," Karie answered, concern on her face.

Mom just smiled, then nodded. "I promise you, your sister and your father. I'll be fine. Besides, if anything did happen the Dark Knight will come and save the day."

Karie then took a while to answer again. "A-alright mom, just remember your promise."

"How could I forget? It is a promise after all." Those were the last words she said to Karie, right before everything went wrong.

Mrs. Henderson was out on the streets of Gotham City around midnight at the time, putting up election signs. Everything was going fine, until she heard screeching tires coming down the road. She turned around to see a drunk driver weaving wildly on the street. His head was out the window and his hands and feet were nowhere near the wheel or pedals. She started to panic, seeing that he could end up hitting her. _He can't hit me. I have to go, __**now**__. I made a promise to my family and it's one I plan to keep._ She picked up her election signs and ran back to her house as fast as she could. _"__Please Dark Knight, help me now."_ After figuring out that the driver was not going to get off her tail, she decided to run into the closest store. The store was a hard-ware store. There were rows of tools, wood, different types of metal, anything that you needed to make something, it was there.

She looked out the window to see a dark, bat-like figure on the top of the truck. He was trying to stop the truck, and get the drunk out before anything serious could happen. He popped all the wheels of the truck with these bat-like boomer-rang things. He then tried to pry open the door of the driver's seat. He was struggling to pry it open, because he didn't want to hurt the drunk. I'm pretty sure after a while of trying, he figured that the truck was going to end up crashing into a store. The _hard-ware store_ in fact.

Mrs. Henderson ran to the aisle where there were giant metal sheets. She could hide under some so she won't get hurt.

Batman had to get the drunk out. So he pulled him out and threw him over his shoulder. He jumped off and placed him on the ground. He then used his Bat Cable to pull himself back on to the truck. He jumped in the driver's seat and tried to steer the truck away from the citizens and pull it to a stop. He tried everything, but the truck was out of control. Seeing that it was going to hit the hard-ware store, he jumped out and threw foam pellets in its way so it would explode or stop. He was off by just a second. The truck crashed into the front of the store. There were glass shards that flew as the window pane shattered, but the truck exploded, and was engulfed in flames.

He quickly ran in after the truck exploded to see if anyone was hurt from the accident. He saw a women under some metal plates, who seemed to have passed out. He put her over his shoulder and quickly ran outside. He put her down and checked to see if she had any injuries. After going through all the medical drills, he deduced that a metal plate had hit her on the head, which caused her to pass out.

The cops, firetrucks, and ambulances had arrived. The cops were quickly trying to get people away from the scene. The firefighters were checking if anyone was inside the store, and at the same time, were trying to put the fire out. The ambulances ran to the scene, quickly taking out multiple gurneys.

Batman was about to pick the woman up before she suddenly opened her eyes and said, "Where am I?"

"You were caught in the explosion of the truck, that crashed into the hard-ware store. You passed out and I brought you back out here," he stated simply. Though he was expressionless, he was trying to understand how she could've woken up so quickly after a head injury.

"Thank you so much," said the woman laying on the ground. "but I have this odd feeling that I'm not going to be able to see my family for a while,"

"What do you mean?" he asked, confused by her strange words.

"My body needs time to recover from this accident. I won't be able to see them during that time," she answered, never meeting his eyes.

"How long will that be?"

"It could take years. If I take too long, I might just die in the middle of it. Anyways, I'm Mrs. Henderson." She finally tilted her head to face him. There was a hint of a smile on her face. If only Batman knew how ironic she thought all of this was.

"Batman."

"Could you promise me something, Batman?" she asked. Her eyes shut briefly.

"What is it?"

"Promise me that you'll watch over my children while I'm gone and guide them down the right path."

"Of course," Batman smiled slightly then asked, "What are their names, and where are they right now?"

"They live on 72 Dragoon Crescent. Their names are Karie Blaire Henderson, 10, and Alexis Dilan Henderson, 9. Promise me you will take good care of them," she said as she raised her hand forward toward Batman.

"I'll do whatever I can," he answered and shook her hand.

"Thank you, and tell them that I love them both with all my heart. Tell my husband the same." And with that she passed out again. Only this time she could be out longer than she should be.

Batman carried her on to a gurney. He then told the cops where he had placed the driver of the truck and left to go find Mrs. Henderson's family.

When he found the house he walked up the door step and rang the door bell. He heard a man yell 'I got it!' and the door was open. Standing there was a slightly taller than average man. He had more muscles than an average 30-year-old would. Standing behind him were two little girls. One with blond hair and very faint auburn streaks and hazel-brown eyes. The other, who looked a little younger, had auburn-brownish hair and hazel-brown eyes. You would've never guessed that they were sisters, if it weren't for their eyes.

"Hello, I'm Batman. I'm here to tell you that your wife is in the hospital. She was inside a hard-ware store, when a uncontrollable truck crashed into it, causing the truck and the hard-ware store to blow up into flames. She doesn't have many major injuries, no burns, just some small bruises. The bad news is that she is now in a comatose. Before she fell into her coma, she told me to come and tell you that she loves all of you with all of her heart. I am so sorry for not being able to help her in time. I tried all I could," said Batman.

Mr. Henderson was frozen solid. He was trembling like crazy. He then put his head down. The elder girl was trying to hold back her tears and act tough. When the tears came out, she quickly wiped them away with her sleeve. The younger girl looked sad. She then looked at her father and older sister. She sighed and then stepped in front of Batman.

"Thank you for telling us the news, and also for trying your best to save my mom." She then hugged him, to Batman's surprise.

Batman was confused. He looked at the father; he was still a little shaky, but there was a sympathetic smile on his face beaming at Batman. The older girl did the same. He then bent down to the younger girls' level. They smiled at each other, before Batman returned her hug.

"You've raised them well. They'll grow up to be great people," said Batman to Mr. Henderson.

"I know they will," Mr. Henderson replied back. After smiling at both of the little girls, Batman left.

"I wanna be just like him when I grow up!" exclaimed Alexis.

"Yeah, me too!" said Karie.

"If you want to be just like Batman, then you have to work really hard in school," said their father.

"Anything to be just like him!" shouted Alexis.

"We'll be the best students in school!" added Karie. Their father smiled proudly, then looked up at the starry night sky.

"I know you will. Now let's get back inside and get some sleep. We'll go visit mom tomorrow!"

"Ok!" said both girls as they made their way to their rooms.

6 months later, on the other hand, well, let's just say that we've had it rough._ Especially_, dad.

~4 Years Present~

Oh well. I changed into some of Karie's hand-me downs, then brushed up. When I walked downstairs I heard Karie and my father yelling at each other, as usual.

"Dad, put the bottle down!" yelled Karie, trying to calm our drunken father down.

"Don't tell me what to do!" he yelled back, before throwing the bottle at Karie. She ducked, luckily from the years of experience from getting hit by them, she knew how to avoid them.

"Dad, stop! You're scaring Alexis and I!" Karie yelled, resuming her previous standing stance. As always, Karie would be the one to step in and take care of the situation, while all I can do is cower on the stairs, afraid of what might happen if I got involved.

"Why should you be scared? I'm your own father!" he screamed back, as he threw another empty bottle of his at Karie.

In times when I'm most stressed or frightened, I go to my keyboard and played the lullaby mom had taught me. Anyone could fall asleep to it. Even my alcoholic, drunk father. A few seconds later, Karie came upstairs, sweat running down her face.

"I'm amazed by how fast you can put someone to sleep with that piece, Dilan," complemented Karie in between breaths.

"Thanks, but I think now would be a great time to go scavenging," I said. I picked up a dirty towel beside me, and tossed it to Karie. "Here."

"Thanks," said Karie, as she caught the towel I passed to her. "We'll leave as soon as I finish cleaning up."

"I'll clean up the glass."

When I walked into the living room, I was surprised to find that dad was sleeping on the couch with a blanket placed over him. _Karie_, I thought. No matter how hard life is with a dad like him, he's still our dad. I quickly cleaned up the broken pieces, throwing them all carefully and quietly into the recycling bin.

"Ready," Karie whispered coming down the stairs, her guitar slung over her shoulder in its case.

"Ready," I said, slipping out the door quietly.

Once I stepped out the door I noticed something lying in front of it. Naturally, I picked it up and read the address. _Bruce Wayne_. How long has it been since Karie and I first met him? It was at the Bruce Wayne charity event for struggling youths. Karie had wanted to go scavenging from the rich there, and ended up trying to pick-pocket Bruce Wayne. He wasn't upset at all, and instead, had his butler Alfred make us some cookies.

"Hey, Karie take a look at this," I said, handing the letter over to her.

After a while of reading it, Karie spoke, "This is a letter from Bruce Wayne himself, stating that he has given us both full scholarships to enroll in Gotham Academy."

"Wow, how thoughtful of him. When do we attend?"

"It says September 22," Karie answered. "Huh, what do you know, the day right before my birthday."

"What else does it say?"

"That our uniforms will be mailed to us by tomorrow," Karie said. I watched as her eyes skimmed over the page. She flipped it around a few times, checking to make sure if it was legitimate or not. She finally gave up searching for evidence of scam. "I guess this is the real deal then."

We first went scavenging in the alleys and subways. We didn't find anything, so we decided start our job earlier today. We walked to the park and got into our usual spots at the fountain. We spent most of day singing and playing simple happy songs, as always. I still remember the first time someone threw money into Karie's guitar case. Karie and I were trying so hard to give the money back to the kind man, but he wouldn't budge. In the end, he gave us some more money. When we got tired of performing, we decided to count up all the money we've made. By the end of the day, we had a grand total of $47.82.

"Hey Karie, why don't we use those 2two extra pennies we got to make a wish at the fountain?" I suggested.

"Sure, we still have some time left before we have to head back home anyways," she said, handing me one of the pennies. We walked up to the fountain and recited our wish in our head. Once we were done making our wish, we threw the pennies into the fountain.

"So, what did you wish for?" asked Karie, as she leaned on the fountain and stared off into the sunset.

"I wished I could protect people and make them happy," I answered as I sat on the edge of the fountain also staring off into the amazing scenery.

"Wow, I wished for the same thing too. I guess great minds think alike," smiled Karie. "Come on, we better get back home."

Before we went to bed I asked Karie a question that's been bothering me for a long time now. "Do you ever feel like you're being watched?"

"Always." Was her answer.

That night, it felt like something inside of me was being freed. Like a wild animal, trapped in a hunters trap. I wasn't the only who felt this too. I heard Karie mumble something like 'stupid stomach' in her sleep. I smiled. I guess she was caught in a more dangerous trap. At the same time though, I felt two pairs of eyes watching Karie and I. Sleep was taking over me, so I brushed the idea off and fell asleep.

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><p><strong>Please review, alert or fav. It would really make my day and besides if you do, then I'll be fueled to right the next chapter more. Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanza, Happy Hanukkah and a Happy New Year to all!<strong>


	2. New Looks, New School

**Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Gotham City<strong>

**September 22ND 7:08 a.m.**

**Karie's Pov**

I did not sleep well for the past few nights, my stomach was annoying me to no end. Never the less you have to get on with life. I walked up over to my sister's bed and gave her a nudge. "Get up Alexis, it's time for our first day at Gotham Academy."

"5 more minutes," she mumbled, pulling the blanket over her head.

I rolled my eyes. "No, now get up. We have to leave soon. Do you know how far Gotham Academy is from here?"

I heard her groan in defeat, making me grin widely. "Alright, fine."

As we both walked into the bath room, I headed for the sink while Alexis turned around to change into her new uniform. That's when I shrieked.

"What's wrong?" asked Alexis.

"Look at my eyes," I said. My eyes had suddenly changed into fox-like eyes. Even my irises were yellow instead of brown. I screamed once again.

"Now what?" asked an annoyed Alexis.

"Your eyes, they've changed too! They look bird-like," I said, staring at my sister.

She ran up to the mirror and looked at herself. "Um, Karie when did I ever have brown streaks in my hair?"

"Never," I said.

"Are you sure?" she asked, turning around holding up some brown streaked hair.

"This is just too weird," I said.

"Hey Karie, your blonde hair looks like you bleached it," said Alexis.

I looked at my hair to see that Alexis was right.

"How are we suppose to go to school like this?"

"Easy, we act normal. Besides, no one knows us yet, so chances are they won't ask."

"With eye's like these?" half-screamed Alexis.

~Gotham Academy~

"Welcome to Gotham Academy. I'm Bett, your Student Liason," said the girl. "You three must be Karie, Alexis, and Artemis."

"Yep, I'm Artemis, but you already knew that," said Artemis. A boy came up beside Artemis, with some type of camera in his hand.

"We'll laugh about this some day," he said, taking a photo of each other.

"Who was that?" asked Artemis.

"A freshman, ignore him," said Bett.

After our tour Artemis, Karie and I headed to the cafeteria for lunch. As we all sat down on the table I spoke, "So, I'm Karie, nice to meet you."

"I'm Alexis," introduced my sister.

"Artemis."

"What grade are you in?" asked Alexis.

"10, what about you?" Artemis asked.

"Freshman, although my sister is in the same grade as you," said Alexis.

"Really, how old are you?"

"13, turning 14 tomorrow," I replied, taking a bite out of my sandwich.

"So, you guys trying out for any of the teams today?" she asked.

"Track," I said.

"Gymnastics," said Alexis.

"Guess I'll see you there," said Artemis, who flashed me a smile.

~Track Tryouts~

I was on my way to the track when I heard a strange buzzing coming from the inside of the school. I put my hands on my ears to help prevent the strange noise from making my head spin. I looked at the school, nothing was there._ That's weird._

At the track there were around 24 kids trying out. 11 girls and 13 boys.

"Alright maggots! You are here to show me what you got and what you can bring to this years Gotham Academy Track Team!" practically screamed the coach.

As we lined up for the 6 laps around a 200m track, I looked around at my competition. Most of the boys were goofing off. The girls though were very different. Most were worrying about failing, not making the next cut or impressing the guys. I rolled my eyes. _Is anyone here actually serious about this?_ That's when I saw a blond-haired girl stand up from tying her shoe laces. She was around my height, maybe a bit taller. She wore a determined face but also a face that read 'This is going to be a breeze, I'm so going to make it.' Finally some competition.

"Ready!" shouted the coach. We all took our ready stances. I was smirking. _This is gonna be fun._

"GO!" screamed the coach. Everyone started with a jog, most of the girls though were running as fast as they could and they were quite a distance behind me, all except the blond. I ran up beside her.

"Hey," I said.

"Hi," she said.

"Think you're gonna make it?" I asked, still smirking.

"Well that depends on the coach," she answered. "Anyone here that you think could be competition?"

"Nah, not really except for one girl," I said. Artemis gave me a confused face.

"Who?" she asked curiously.

"Well, I think her name is… Artemis," I smiled. I looked at Artemis and her face lit up.

"I'm already starting to like you Karie," Artemis said.

"We'll see if you still like me after the sixth lap," I said and sped off. I could practically feel Artemis smirk. I heard her say 'I like competition' before I heard her foot steps getting closer to me. When I was about to finish my sixth lap, the buzzing started again. I put my hands on my ears.

"It… hurts," I said quietly. I was starting to stumble more as I ran and I wasn't running at such a fast pace anymore. By the time I reached the finish line I fell to the ground on my knees. I felt someone try to catch my fall. I turned my head to see a concerned Artemis.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Kinda, I hear this buzzing noise coming from the inside of the school," I answered. I placed one of my hands on the one Artemis had on my shoulder. "All in all, I'm good."

She sighed, then looked up at the school. I followed her eyes. There was something there and I could hear it. I think it was… breathing?

"What is that?" I asked. Artemis looked at me. That's when I heard screaming coming from the school.

"Quick we have to get you somewhere safe," Artemis said as she helped me up.

"I can't… my sister… is in there," I said, but I blacked out because the buzzing became extremely loud but not before hearing Artemis say that she'll keep her safe.

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><p><strong>Spoiler Alert: Next chapter will be the gymnastics tryout. Please review, alert or fav!<strong>


	3. Friends

**Gotham City, Gotham Academy**

**September 22ND 3:36 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

I left the girls change room wearing tight black shorts and a tight grey t-shirt that had a really cool red design on it. As I entered our gym, I noticed that it looked completely different from what we usually see in gym class. The whole floor was covered in blue mats for safety reasons. They had set-up a trampoline, flying rings, still rings, high bar, vault, pommel horse and balance beam. I stared up at everything in awe. _If only we could do this in gym class._

That's when I noticed some students and the coach putting up something. At the bottom was a giant net for safety. At the top though were students setting up ropes with horizontal bars at the end of them. That's when I realized that they were setting up a trapeze. My face then grew a big wide smile on it. _I get to be able to use all this stuff. _I walked around the trapeze, examining and adoring it even more. I noticed that the coach was at the top of the trapeze. _Might as well go say hi or help out._

"Hi coach," I said. The coach was looking over at a student making sure that he was setting up the trapeze correctly. Once the student was done he turned around.

"Don't sweat it coach," he said as he gave the coach a reassuring smile. I think he was my age, 13 I guess. He had black hair and was wearing a white and blue tank top and black tights. His eyes were a lighter colour of blue. It was like bright blue with a misty cover over it. _They look like the colour of the sky… They're so beautiful. Wait, I just called his eyes beautiful._ I thought before I realized that I was starting to blush. Luckily, it died down before anyone could notice.

"Keep saying that and I'll actually start sweating," the coach said, making the sarcasm really obvious.

"Nice try coach, but I think you should stop trying to get yourself fired," replied the boy. That's when I started to actually laugh.

"Ha, no offence coach, but I think he's right," I said through laughs. The boy started to chuckle lightly too.

"Kids these days, if only we could understand them," muttered the coach as she climbed down the ladder. All I could do was laugh some more.

"So who are you? I've never seen you around before," asked the misty-eyed boy.

"I'm new, today's my first day. Names Alexis, but you can call me Dilan," I answered with a smirk. This kid was very strange and mysterious, but friendly at the same time. "You are?"

"Richard, but you can call me Dick," he said as held his hand out in front of me.

"Nice to meet you Dick," I said as I shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you too Dilan," Dick said back.

"So anyone here you think is gonna be competition to you?" I asked, as I pulled my hand back to my side.

"No not really. Everyone here is just here to a) impress people b) tryout for fun or c) actually try to win," Dick answered.

"Hmm, I'm going to go with both b) and c)," I said. Dick just laughed. There was something about his laugh that made you want to laugh with him. _I've never met anyone who could actually make me laugh this quickly. More importantly, become friends this quickly._

"Come on let's go, the tryout's about to start," said Dick as he started to make his way to the ladder.

"Alright, today I'm going to see which one of you has what it takes to represent Gotham Academy's gymnastics Team," said the coach while walking around and looking at everyone.

"We will first order you into lines depending on which event you think that you can do the best in," she continued. "Whatever you think you can do best, line up beside it."

Everyone scattered to a different station. I just stood there, Dick standing beside me as well.

"You two get over to a station!" called the coach.

"We can't," stated Dick simply. I looked at him confused. He gave me a 'don't worry' face.

"Why is that?" asked the coach, giving us a smug look.

"We're both great at everything here," he said with a grin. I was gaping at him. There was no way he just said that.

"But I didn't go to any of them because—" he put his hand over my mouth. He then moved his head close to my ear. My face turned red, either because of the fact that he actually dared to touch me and make me shut up, or because a he was really, really close to me.

"We'll laugh about this one day," he whispered and took his hand off my mouth. I was about to scream at him again when I realized that everyone was staring at us.

"What?" I half-screamed half asked everyone. Everyone flinched, not expecting me to yell at them.

"Alright you two I'll see what you got after I'm done with everyone else," instructed the coach. "Just stretch and practice at some of the stations that we've finished."

Both Dick and I went to an open area so we could stretch. We decided to stretch our arms then our legs and back.

"So what are grade you in?" asked Dick.

"I'm a freshman," I answered as I switched to stretch my other arm.

"So you're 13 I'm guessing?" said Dick as we started to stretch our legs and back.

"Yep. So what grade are you in?" I asked back. If he knew my grade then I should know his too.

"Freshman," he said simply like it was no big deal.

"So you're 13 I'm guessing," I said trying to copy the way he guessed my age.

"Yep," he said. I started to chuckle lightly. He's the first freshman that I _actually _met. I was brought out of my thoughts when I heard Dick laugh as well.

"What's so funny?" I said, confused by his laughter

"You look cute—whelmed. Most people who hear this are over-whelmed," he explained.

I gave him another confused look. I was confused because he used the word whelmed, I think he almost called me cute and he's blushing. "Why?"

"I think it's because people expect me to skip grades and be the top student," he said as he walked over to the still rings. He jumped on and got a good grip. He started to swing himself a little, preparing to perform tricks on them.

"And why is that?" I asked.

"I think it's because I'm the son of Bruce Wayne," he answered. He started to swing full on circles on the still rings. He then stopped swinging and held on to his whole body weight with his head opposite to the floor. He then swung and jumped off the still rings and landed on the pommel horse. He started to hold his body weight on the pommel horse. He looked like he was break dancing on it. When I thought that he was going to stop and jump off he jumped into the air doing a front flip then landing on the balance beam without missing a beat.

I started to clap. "Where did you learn to do that?"

"My parents taught me," he answered with a sad smile. _Parents_, that's what he said. I looked away from Dick and sat down. _He said it with a sad smile. _I started to think about my parents. Dad… Mom. I must've been in deep thought because I didn't notice that I was silently crying or that Dick had sat down beside me.

"Hey," said Dick, he had a gentler voice on and not his usual fun and mysterious voice. "I'm sorry."

_Sorry?_ I turned my head to see Dick sitting beside me. He wore a look of concern.

"About what?" I asked as best I could after crying.

"About making you all sad. Sad enough to bring you to tears," he replied. He looked away. A face of shame on his face now.

I put my hand over his. "Don't worry about it. I'm one of the toughest girls you'll ever meet."

Dick noticed my hand on his. I looked at him as he tilted his head slightly. I could see his face better now and I saw his face turn cherry red._ Strange_ I thought. He then looked up at me. I gave him one of my best smiles I could pull off after crying. He smiled back, relief and happiness was the mask he wore now.

"You know you're different," he smiled as he stood up and put his hand out in front of me. I grabbed it, Dick pulling me up very quickly. _Man is he strong_. After getting up I asked him another question.

"Different how?"

"Different as in you don't care what people think about you, you don't judge people and gossip like most people would and you are the opposite of almost every single girl I know," he answered smiling after listing everything.

"So is that different good or different bad?" I asked.

"Man do you ask a lot of questions! And I mean different good," Dick answered again. "And dense too."

"What was that?" I asked. I could've sworn that Dick said something else.

"Nothing!" he said quickly. Before I could say something else, the coach called us over.

"Alright you two show me what you got!" said the coach. We first tried the flying and still rings. Dick did great. Me on the other hand, since I'm talking about my skills I would say very bad. The trampoline and vault were next. We both did pretty well since we just did flips in the air. The balance beam and high bar were a breeze. The pommel horse on the other hand, I don't want to talk about it. Let's just say I almost knocked the coach senseless. The last station was the trapeze. I looked over at Dick. He had a face of excitement and sadness. _That's strange. I guess I'll ask him about it later._

"Which one of you would like to go first?" asked the coach as she stared at us both.

"Ladies first," said Dick sarcastically. To emphasize the joke he positioned his hands in a 'you first' manner and even bowed a little. I gave him a small glare then smiled and climbed up the ladder. When I was at the top I could feel a large amount of heat coming off the roof. _Must be the heater._

I grabbed the trapeze bar and jumped off. I was swinging around 35 feet off the ground. _Man I love this feeling_. I got my legs tucked on to the bar and swung to the next bar. I grabbed it and released my legs from the other bar. I did a few swings on the bar before launching myself into the air, I did a few front-flips then grabbed hold of the other bar legs first. I decided that I would finish up with a back flip and land on the platform. When I sent myself flying through the air, I could feel movement coming from the top of the school there were 5 signs of heat. I forgot that I was suppose to land so I decided to do one more flip and land. When I was about to land, a dozen signs of heat came out of no where. That made me lose focus. I landed with half my feet on the platform the other half dragging me off the platform. I saw Dick just getting on to the platform. He saw me trying to regain balance and ran to help me. It was too late. I was plummeting backwards towards the mats on the floor instead of the safety net. I saw Dick jump after me. I tried to reach out for him. He did the same and caught my hand. He then pulled me close to him and flipped on to the safety net.

"Alexis! Alexis! Say something!" shouted Dick.

My vision was blurred. "My head… hurts," I managed. I heard Dick sigh.

"I'm glad you're okay," he said and brought me closer to him. I was too dizzy to know that he was hugging me. That's when I felt a huge number of people scattering into different directions and many people screaming. They were running away from... a kid? I turned my head in the direction of the screaming and closed my eyes. Dick followed the direction I turned my head in. I was trying to focus and see what people were afraid of. I shot my eyes open.

"What is it?" asked Dick.

"It's… a giant robot... and it's coming in our direction," I answered. Dick made a confused face, but it quickly disappeared and turned into a serious one. "There are also a whole swarm of… monkeys coming this way and they're carrying a kid, no, a man with them."

After being able to see and detect those heat traces I passed out. I was unconscious, but I could still here and feel everything happening around me. Dick told everyone to get out of the building. He then carried me bridal style to some place else in the gym. I then heard him say 'Everyone, Professeur Ivo attacking Gotham Academy right now!' _I wonder who he was talking too_. He then walked up to me and moved some hair off my face. I felt many traces of heat moving all at once. I screamed slightly. Dick held on to me.

"Don't worry you're gonna be okay," he said. Those were the last words I heard before I really blacked out.

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	4. Super

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted or faved!**

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><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**September 23RD 6:34 a.m.**

**Karie's Pov**

_Oh, ow. Why does my head hurt so much. Oh yeah, I was knocked out by some weird buzzing noise coming from the school. Wait the school…_

"Alexis!" I shouted and suddenly shot up from my seat on the… bed? I looked around for Alexis. I find her lying on a bed like mine to my right. I jumped out of my bed and ran up beside hers.

"Alexis! Alexis are you okay?" I screamed. I was panicking. I'm suppose to protect her, not let her end up sleeping, lying unconsciously, or maybe even… No I won't think of my sister like that. I gripped the sheets of her bed tightly.

"Karie calm down!" I know that voice.

"Artemis?" I asked as I turned around. Standing there were Artemis (in this green outfit), a ginger haired boy her age, a green-skinned girl, a buff boy wearing a black shirt, and a tall boy with… _gills_?

"Karie calm down! Your sister is fine just tired. She's resting right now and so should you," advised Artemis.

"Where am I? And who are they?" I asked Artemis as she guided me back to my bed. She turned and looked at everyone.

"The names Kid Flash," introduced the ginger as he smiled and pointed to himself with his thumb.

"I'm Miss Martian," smiled the girl.

"I am Aqualad," added the guy with gills.

"Superboy," stated the boy in the black t-shirt. _SUPERBOY?_

"Nice to meet you all," I said and waved my right hand in my special _three finger_ wave. My ring finger and pinky down while the rest of my fingers are up, kind of making a gun shape.

"Now that the 'who are they' part is covered, 'where are you' is in the cave infirmary," answered Artemis.

I lowered my head to face the bed. I raised my arm and slammed it down hard on the small night stand between me and Alexis' bed. I slammed my fist on it so hard, it dented the night stand, a big strange indent now permanently part of the night stand. I heard Wally take a step backwards after my anger was released. I was so angry I didn't even care that Artemis said the cave infirmary, whatever that meant.

"It's my fault," I whispered. Both Miss Martian and Artemis came up to me and placed a hand on my shoulder(s).

"Karie," said Miss Martian softly.

"I'm the reason she's in that bed right now! I couldn't protect her! What kind of big sister am I?" I screamed.

"A really great one," said Artemis gently.

My eyes turned to the size of quarters. I looked up at Artemis to see her looking over at my sister. She had a sad look on her face and her eyes, they were… unexplainable. I was very confused by Artemis' strange behaviour before I finally understood. I closed my eyes and smiled sympathetically. I got up from my spot on the bed and walked up to Artemis. I put a hand on her shoulder just like she had done for me moments ago. She was surprised at first, before she realized that it was just me. She smiled at me. I smiled back and gave her a nod of understanding.

"Ugh," came a sound from Alexis' bed.

"Alexis!" I exclaimed in joy as I quickly made my way over to the side of her bed.

"Ugh, I feel like someone hit me in the head with a baseball bat," said Alexis. I looked down at my brave, tomboy of a little sister. I laughed a little at my sister's explanation of pain.

"Your okay," I said softly. Alexis turned her head in my direction and smiled.

"I see you are too," she said back. Suddenly Alexis' face turned into a face of worry and concern. "Wait where's—"

"He had to go, but he told me to tell him if you're okay or not," said Kid Flash, cutting Alexis off.

Usually Alexis would be very angry that some stranger just cut her off, but her face relaxed, sighing in relief. I wonder who she meant?

"Anyways, who are all of you?" asked Alexis.

"I'm Artemis, a friend of your sisters," said Artemis.

"Kid Flash is the ginger, Miss Martian is the girl standing beside him, Aqualad with the gills, Superboy in the t-shirt," I named quickly. That's when another question popped into my head. "Why are you guys here anyway?"

"Artemis and Robin said that they brought you here for treatment. After our incident we had to come by the infirmary as well," explained Aqualad. "Robin told us that he had to go off and research something and asked us if we could stay here until you two wake up."

I nodded processing everything Aqualad just said into my head. "Thank you."

"Yeah, thanks for getting us here," thanked Alexis. "Oh yeah, Kid, tell your friend thanks for saving me from almost plummeting to my death and that _thing _back there."

I gave Alexis a confused look. She saw me and gave me a look saying that she'll tell me later.

"Will do," answered Kid Flash.

"Oh, and thanks Artemis," I said, remembering that she was also part of the reason for getting me here safely.

"Any time Karie," she answered. I smiled at her.

"Yeah, thanks for saving my older sister's butt. She can't do so well under pressure," snickered Alexis.

"Oh really, you were the one who fainted in the middle of some big disaster in the school," I said back. "And you're talking about not being able to do well under pressure."

Alexis glared at me. Everyone else around us were laughing at me and Alexis' fight. Alexis and I soon realized how funny we looked fighting about something like this and joined in on the laughter.

A while later the team was called down by Batman for an important meeting. After they left Black Canary walked in saying that we should be able to go home by tomorrow, but a parent or legal guardian must be notified of our absence, and when we will return.

"That means we'll be stuck here for the rest of our lives," I sighed.

"And why is that?" asked Black Canary.

"Our alcoholic father would never care where we are and what we do," I answered furiously.

Black Canary gave an understanding smile. "Don't worry. The League will work something out."

When she left I jumped back on to my bed. It was definitely a lot better than the bed at home. The bed was longer than the one I out grew years ago, but still sleep on. I stretched and yawned. That's when I heard Alexis sigh.

"What wrong?" I asked as I turned on my side and looked at Alexis.

"How are we suppose to get out of here? Dad will never answer to the notice," said Alexis worriedly. "I don't want to spend my whole life in an infirmary!"

"I know," I said back in a comforting voice. "We'll get out some how."

"I hope so," said Alexis with a sigh.

That's when I remembered that Aqualad said something about Alexis' friend carrying her to this infirmary and that Kid Flash said that he'll tell his friend that she's okay.

"Hey Alexis?" I called.

"Yeah," she answered back.

"When Aqualad was explaining why he, Kid Flash, Artemis, Miss Martian and Superboy were here, he said something about a boy carrying you to this infirmary. Who is this boy?" I asked her curiously. How dare some one touch my sister, especially a _boy_.

"Oh yeah, him. I met him at gymnastics tryout. His name is Dick. He saved me from almost falling to my death when I missed my landing on the trapeze—" I was gaping at her. She almost fell off a trapeze! Alexis just rolled her eyes. "Anyways, he also saved me from that giant invasion of robots coming our way."

Giant invasion of robots? "How did you know there was an invasion of robots coming your way?"

"Well you know how today was the day that our wish came true?" I nodded and then she continued. "Wel,l I somehow have the ability to sense heat now. So I know where someone could be or if there is a running current of electricity."

"No way. So now you're a living heat seeker," I said very amazed. "Prove it."

"Right now someone is fixing the power and security of the cave, and someone else is helping him," she said as she closed her eyes and concentrated. I ran to the door and opened it quickly to hear people typing away on something. 'Switching Cave security to League security.' said a computerized voice. My jaw dropped open again. I walked back to my bed and wrapped myself up with the blanket.

"That is so cool," I said.

"Yeah, so now I can sense heat through any object. That's the reason I almost fell to my death and was knocked out by over using this power," explained Alexis.

"Wow, that's kinda like what happened to me," I said. "I was running and while I was running, I heard some weird buzzing noise coming from the school. It killed my head like there was no tomorrow. It started getting worse when I heard screaming coming from the school. It was so loud, and the buzzing started again too. It was too much so I was knocked out."

"That's scary, Karie," said Alexis. "I wonder why your power is very keen hearing, but mine is like a heat seeker."

I thought about what Alexis said for a while. How come our powers are so different?

"So what place did you come in?" asked Alexis, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"First of course, but this time when I was running I wasn't trying as hard. It felt like I was meant to run quickly, yet still have energy left over," I answered.

"Nice… and strange," commented Alexis.

"Thanks that makes me feel so much better," I said dryly.

"Hey that's the truth Care," said Alexis her hands up like I was gonna arrest her. I laughed, Alexis joining me.

I lied back down on to my pillow, my hands behind my head. "Hey you should get some rest, using your new powers must've taken a lot out of you."

"Okay," yawned Alexis before she quickly fell asleep. I smiled, then closed my eyes.

~My Dream~

I was in a forest biome, the landscape was so beautiful. I was in Canada no doubt. I came here with my family when I was 6 and Alexis, 5. Mom loved the outdoors. That would explain why she was claustrophobic and why both me and Alexis are claustrophobic as well.

I walked around the area, taking in the view. I found a lake and decided to sit by it. It was nice. The sun wasn't to warm or hot, and there was a nice gentle breeze. That's when I heard a bird cry. I looked up to my left to see a red-tailed hawk circling an area below it. That's when it dived down and kil-caught it's prey. _Red-tailed hawks have UV vision like most birds of prey do. They can sense and see heat and the movement of heat while they are flying way above the source heat._ I thought, I remember reading that in a book before.

Suddenly it became night and I couldn't see anything thing at all. Although I could smell and hear a rabbit in the bushes behind me. That's when I heard something else coming from behind the bushes. It was a red fox getting ready to pounce on its prey. That's when I heard the crushing of bones. The fox started eating the rabbit. The smell of blood was very strong now. That's when I heard a voice.

"Red foxes rely on smelling and hearing more than sight. There legs are very strong and meant to walk, run and pounce on its prey quietly. They are very quick so that they can catch their prey without the prey out running them, or if the prey tries to attack they can get out-of-the-way quickly."

"Who's there?" I said quickly. I brought my arms up in front of me. "Answer me!" I was no longer in the forest, but in a strange white room. I turned around hearing breathing coming from behind. What I saw was what scared me the most, yet made me happiest.

"Mom!" I screamed happily and ran up to my mother and hugged her. It felt so nice to be in her embrace again.

"I missed you so much Karie," said Mom. My smile grew even wider when I heard her say my name.

"Mom… is this real?" I asked. I needed to know. If this wasn't then I am missing my mom very much. But if it is real, then I never want this moment to end.

"Yes Blaire, it is," answered my mom. Mom was the only person who called me by both my first and middle name.

I hugged my mom even tighter. I don't want to lose her again. "We missed you so much."

"I know. Now Karie, I don't have a lot of time but I'm going to have to say as much as I can," said my mom.

I looked up at my mom. She was still radiating with happiness. "How is this even possible?"

"I'm telepathic," answered my mom.

"Cool!" I squealed. Mom was the only person who could bring out the girly side of me.

"Yes it is," said my mom.

"But wait, how come all these years you've been in a coma, you've never contacted me, Alexis or even dad?" I half-shouted, half-asked.

"Because this is when you need me the most," she said simply.

"Now? Mom, dad's been drinking and abusing me and Karie for over 4 years! And now you come and help out?" I screamed. This was unbelievable, and mom was acting so relaxed about it. I bet she knew that I would act like this.

"Blaire can I please get to my point. I don't have much time left with you, in your dream world," said my mom quickly. She wore a desperate look.

I sighed. "Then you better hurry it up."

She smiled. "Ever since you and Alexis have both unlocked your powers, I knew that The Light would want to capture you even more."

"The Light?" I questioned. Who are they?

"You'll find out soon enough. Anyways, they've been hunting me ever since they found out that I was telepathic. They wanted to use my powers to get into people's heads and learn their plans. They also wanted me so that I could black mail people to do things for them, so I went into hiding. I decided to live a normal life as best I could and not get caught by them."

"So you haven't used your powers ever since then?"

"Yes. I'm using them now because you really need to know this. You and Alexis have the powers of an animal. You have the power of a red fox, the gray foxes special ability to climb trees and you can scare people senseless with just a look in the eye. Alexis on the other hand has the powers of a red-tailed hawk. She also has the special ability to, well how do I put this into words? She also has the ability to scare people senseless, maybe even to death," explained my mother quickly.

"How?" I asked, over-whelmed by all this information.

"Her scream, yell, pleads or cries," listed my mother. "Use these powers wisely. The Light will come after me. Once they find you two, they'll hold me hostage and make you do their bidding by black mailing you."

"We'll be ready mom," I said trying to act brave.

"I know you two will. Karie Blaire Henderson, my beautiful, brave daughter," mom said while caressing my face. It's been a long time since I've been comforted like this. "My time with you is up for now, but don't worry I'll be back soon, next time I might even be awake. Be strong my daughter. Watch over Alexis, and be careful about the choices you make. Your decisions might be one that dooms everyone. Tell Alexis that I love you, and if you can, your father too. I love you all. You all mean the world to me."

I started to cry. This was so much to take in, but I have to be strong. For everyone.

"I love you to mom. See you soon," I said with a smile. Mom wiped away some of my tears with her hands. I grabbed hold of her hand. I'm not going to lose her. I'm going to save her. Mom slowly faded away, my over-whelming dream coming to an end.

~End of Dream~

I woke up crying. I quickly wiped my tears away. I looked out the window. The sun was rising. It was so beautiful. It's a good thing that it was the weekend. I don't think me and Alexis could take school after all this. I looked over at Alexis. She was sleeping peacefully, a smile on her face.

"Hey Alexis," I said waking her up.

"Yeah?" she said.

"Mom says she loves you," I told her.

Her eyes went big. "How?" was all she could say.

"Mom contacted me in my dreams," I explained all that I had dreamed about.

"Cool!" exclaimed Alexis. "Oh right, happy 14 birthday!"

"Thanks," I laughed. My sister, she can be so happy in the most strangest times.

"What did she say?" asked Alexis.

That's when a knock came from the door.

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><p><strong>Please review, alert or fav!<strong>


	5. Wayne Manor

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**September 23RD 6:34 a.m.**

**Karie's Pov**

"Come in," said Alexis and I.

"Hello," said Batman.

"What do you want?" I asked suspiciously.

"Karie, be nice," reprimanded Alexis.

"It's alright," he said. "I'm here to get you two out of here.

"So when do we leave?" I asked, glad we got to leave this place.

"Whenever you're ready," he answered.

"We'll be out soon," said Alexis. Alexis and I quickly put back on the clothes we were wearing before we both were brought here.

We made our way out of the cave through this strange teleport thing to find a huge black limo waiting out in the front. Alexis and I both dropped our jaws while Batman walked up to it like it was nothing.

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><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**September 23RD 11:17 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

We arrived at a huge mansion. Both my sister's and mine jaws dropped again. Batman showed us around the 'house' who belonged to his good friend Bruce Wayne. Everything he showed us was amazing. The rooms were huge and they were very formal. Our guest rooms were the size of 2 master rooms.

"And we get to stay here?" I asked Batman. He nodded.

"Lunch is at 12:00 sharp. You both know your way to the dining hall right?" he asked us. We both nodded. With that he left. At the same time, a man in a suit, who I guessed was the butler walked into the room.

"I have laid out some new clothes for the both of you. I apologize if they don't fit. Oh, and just throw your dirty clothes down the laundry shoot," he said.

"Thank you…?" I said before pausing.

"The name is Alfred," he said.

"Thank you Alfred," said Karie. Alfred smiled before making his way into the kitchen.

After lunch I decided to watch some tv. I sat on the couch, but ended up lying on it. It was so comfortable compared to my bed.

"This is Cat Grant reporting that on September 10, 3 men, including the Mayor of Gotham City, were all attacked by what they say was an ape who was holding a machine gun that attacked them. Stay tuned for more news."

I couldn't stand the commercials so I ended up falling asleep. When I woke up, I decided to go back upstairs and sleep in my bed. Although after about 3 minutes, I kinda got lost. I ended up in some cozy family room. There was a fire-place burning in it, a grandfather clock on one of the walls, a cool designed rug and a one person couch in front of the fire-place on top of the carpet. I sat down in the couch. It was actually quite comfortable. That's when I looked up above the fireplace and saw a picture a man holding a woman in his arms lovingly. The man had brown eyes and the woman, well her eyes were closed. _I wonder why there would be a picture of these two in this room?_

"Those are my parents," said a voice. I turned around to see Dick standing behind the couch looking up at the picture. That's when I realized that he must've had it harder than Karie and I.

"I'm sorry," I said. I looked down at the floor. Invading his life was not something I was suppose to do.

"It's okay. I just miss them. Bruce gave me this room," he said. _Bruce, as in Bruce Wayne. Didn't he tell me yesterday that he was Bruce Wayne's son? _I mentally face palmed myself. _I can't believe I said yes to staying in the same house as a guy who goes to my school! How could I have been so dense?_

"I feel terrible," I said, my head still down. He placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Come on, I'll show you to your room," he said. I look up to see him smiling. How could he be smiling? I reluctantly got up, but I looked back at the picture.

"They passed away in a performance." He explained all that happened to them and himself, he of course left out the 'I also became Robin and that Bruce Wayne is Batman' part. Dick looked down at the floor. I felt really guilty, he didn't have to tell me all that. I walked up to Dick and hugged him. Reluctantly he hugged back.

"So can you show me the way to my guest room now?" I asked trying to cheer him up.

He smiled. "This way."

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><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**September 24TH 6:24 a.m.**

**Karie's Pov**

I was surprised to find something on my nightstand that wasn't there the night before. I sat up and picked up the small box. That's when I noticed the card lying on the nightstand as well. I decided to read the card before opening the box.

_I heard it was your birthday, so I got you something. Happy birthday Karie._

_Bruce Wayne_

I put down the card and opened the small gift box. In it, was a white guitar pick with my name etched in katakana. The gold letters of my name made the guitar pick look like a fossil. On the back etched in gold as well was 'For all those special times.' _I wonder what that means?_

After breakfast Bruce offered to do anything we like. Strange, we barely know each other. The first thing that I wanted to do was go back home. I still have to tell dad about mom.

"Hey um, Bruce?" I asked.

"Yes?"

"Can we go back to our house? There's something I have to do," I said.

"Sure, where do you live?" he asked.

"72 Dragoon Crescent," I answered.

"I'm coming too," said Alexis.

"Might as well tag along," said Dick.

When we reached our house I stared up at. It seems so peaceful on the outside. If only you could see the inside…

"I'm going in there myself. If you hear any strange noises coming from inside, call the cops," I ordered, then quickly made my way to the house. I unlocked the door with the key that I always kept with me. As I carefully walked inside the house, I heard dad snoring on the couch in the living room. I sighed. I tip-toed upstairs quietly, knowing what would happen if I woke up dad. I went into the room I shared with Alexis. I grabbed a duffel bag, two of our favourite string bags, my shoulder bag, and our backpacks. I stuffed the string bags and shoulder bag into the backpacks. I then went through our room and grabbed everything that was precious to us. I placed everything in the duffel bag.

I then went into mom and dads room. It felt strange since no one has been in there for over 4 years. I went up to moms desk. On it were photos of us and some of her jewelry. I grabbed one photo that had a picture of us all. I placed it gently in between the clothes in the duffel bag. I then went to dads room. I took out $30 from his wallet and slipped it into my pocket.

As I made my way downstairs I placed everything in front of the open door. _It's now or never._ I walked up to dad, who was still sleeping in the living.

"Dad? Dad wake up, I have to tell you something," I said. I stood a couple of metres away from him, just in case.

"Ugh, what is it Karie?" he mumbled annoyed. _At least he isn't drunk._ I thought.

"Did you always know that mom was telepathic?" I asked him. He got up from his spot on the couch and sat on it instead. He was quiet.

"Yeah," he answered in barely a whisper.

"You didn't tell us because you thought that we would get hurt didn't you?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said again.

"Mom told me tell you that she loves you," I said quietly.

"She did?" he asked. I must get my curiosity from my dad.

"Yeah, she contacted me in my dreams," I explained. Dad started to go off like a bomb.

"SHE DECIDES TO CONTACT YOU NOW AFTER 4 YEARS OF GRIEF AND PAIN!" he yelled. I backed away. This is not good.

"Dad remember that she only did that so that she could protect us!" I fought back. He had no right to be angry. Especially after all the sacrifices mom has made for us.

"THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" screamed dad. He started to pick up everything in his sight and throw it at me. I kept on dodging and yelling at him to stop. He didn't listen of course. I was dodging so much that I let my guard down to rest. Big mistake there. Dad threw a lamp at me and it shattered into a million sharp shards of glass from the impact. He sent me flying and I hit the wall of the staircase. I was bleeding like there might not be a tomorrow for me. I heard multiple foot steps come running up to me. That's when it all turned black.

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><p><strong>Alexis' Pov<strong>

We heard glass shatter coming from inside the house followed by a loud thud. I looked through the door and see Karie bleeding like crazy. I quickly jumped out of the car. Dick, Alfred and Bruce following me.

As I picked up Karie, I started to cry, my blood boiling. I looked at my dad as he was about to throw a chair at me, but I couldn't care less. What mattered most now was Karie. I just sat there. As my dad threw the chair at me, something hit the chair and knocked it out of my way. Bruce went up to my dad and started to hold him in a submissive lock. Dick came up to me and Karie and made sure that we were alright. I couldn't take it any more. I've kept it in for 4 years.

"STOP!" I screamed. Everything just stopped. Dick was trying to stop the blood coming from Karie, while my dad and Bruce were fighting. That's when my dad collapsed. Bruce hand cuffed him then came up to Karie.

"She needs to be treated," Bruce said. He quickly picked her up and placed her in the limo gently. "Alfred take everyone to the hospital, I'll meet you guys there."

I was still crying. I must've looked pathetic. I could hear dads voice echo in my head. _You're nothing but a pathetic, useless piece of trash. You don't deserve to live. Everyone would be better off if you were wiped off the face of this planet!_ I started to cry even more, curling up into a ball. Dick put his arms around me. I cried into his chest. When my crying died down, Dick helped me to the limo and put all the bags into the trunk.

On our way to the hospital, Dick used his first aid kit to help Karie as best he could. I couldn't do anything. I felt so useless. When we made it to the hospital, I quickly jumped out and screamed to the nurses to get a unconsious girl to the ER. Dick, Alfred and I all waited outside. We didn't say anything. I was silently crying. Dick noticed this and put his hand on my shoulder. Bruce came shortly after we arrived. He sat down beside Alfred, a look of shame on his face. 3 hours later the ER sign shut off. I jumped up and ran to the door as the Doctor came out.

"How is she?" I asked very concerned.

"She's fine," he answered. "But she'll have to stay in the hospital for 3 days."

"Good to hear, so can I go see her?" I asked. He nodded.

"Room 259," he said. I thanked him and sped over to her room. When I opened the door. Karie was sound asleep. I smiled and closed the door. I'll come visit when she's awake. As I closed the door everyone else came running up to me.

"Well?" asked Alfred.

"How is she?" asked Bruce.

"She's fine. She's just sleeping. We'll come visit her tomorrow, it's not smart to try to wake my sister and besides she needs the rest," I answered. They all nodded and we made our way back to the limo.

"So, where will you guys go now?" asked Dick.

I shrugged. "I don't know. It's been a long time since we've ever actually felt like we were home."

"You two can stay at our house for now," offered Bruce.

"We couldn't," I said. "Besides we wouldn't be able to afford it."

"Don't worry about it," said Dick. "What are friends for?" I smiled at all of them.

"Thank you all so much, I don't know how to repay you all," I said.

"Oh please, just because we live in such a big house and have money, doesn't mean that we do what most rich people do in movies," said Alfred, with his English accent.

When we got back I just headed straight to my room with all the bags Karie packed. I went through everything and put them into piles of my things and Karie's. When I was going through the clothes I found a picture of all of us. Mom, dad, Karie and me. We were all in the forest of Canada, camping out. Those were good times. I placed that photo down gently.

I decided to finish off the homework I had. When I was done I put it away and then got Karie's things and placed them down in her room. I went back to my room and changed into my pajamas. I wasn't exactly tired yet so I decided to go outside on the balcony connected to my room. The stars were beautiful tonight. I sighed. I sat down against the brick wall beside the door. It was so nice to be outside with the soft breeze blowing in your face. Soon I fell asleep under the starry night sky.

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><p><strong>It was pretty fun writing how a tomboy like Alexis, broke down 2 times in one day. It's different. Please review, alert or fav!<strong>


	6. Gotham Park

**To hear the song that Alexis' sings go to this link. To listen to it in English go to the second one. I also highly recommend finding the english translation of the song.**

**watch ? v = 84 HFMB 2 ijV Q**

**watch ? v = B7 nVP PI**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the song that Alexis' sings, or anything from Young Justice or DC Comics, b****ut I do own Karie and Alexis.**

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><p><strong>Gotham City<strong>

**September 27TH 2:46 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

Karie was finally released from the hospital. She seemed very glad that she was, I guess she didn't like spending days in a boring room on a bed with a needle in your arm. When Karie was brought back to Dick's house Bruce explained to her what will happen to me and her. I also told Karie about the strange person who helps me at night. The strange thing is that every night I would fall asleep on the balcony, and when I wake up I would be in bed under the covers. I wonder who puts me back into bed. Karie just said that it might be Alfred or Bruce or maybe even I sleep walk back into bed. I denied the sleep walking but someone putting me back into bed makes sense.

"Hey, how about when you're done we go out for a walk in the park and play our music?" I suggested.

"Definitely," she agreed. "What about the instruments though?"

"Well I think instead of bringing your backpack back at our house, you ended up bringing your guitar," I stated.

"Oh, oops," she said embarrassed by her mistake.

"Yeah oops," I said and rolled my eyes.

~Gotham Park~

"Where do you want to perform?" I asked as we reached the park.

"In front of the fountain," Karie answered with a smirk.

"What song?" I asked.

"**INSERT SONG TITLE," **she answered with another one of her sly smirks. I swear ever since she got her powers her smirks look like a sly foxes smirk. I nodded to let her know that I'm ok with doing the song and we started to perform.

I started to sing as Karie strummed her acoustic guitar. Karie was strumming away on her guitar for her solo. I swayed my head to the music and waited for my time to finish the rest of the song.

People had started to gather around me and Karie, listening intently. When I finished everyone clapped and threw money into Karie's guitar case. We thanked everyone for their kindness. While we were thanking everyone, there was a giant explosion with plenty of screaming coming after it. I felt a large man in a robot suit firing something at people.

"Do you hear anything?" I asked Karie.

"Screaming, people running, something being fired like a ray gun, and I think I hear ice freezing," she answered her eyes closed and directed at the source. "How about you, see or feel anything?"

"I see/feel a man in a large robot suit with some type of ray gun, people fleeing the scene, and some kid fighting the guy in the robot suit," I answered, my eyes closed as well, directed towards the source.

"Come on, let's go try to stop that guy in the metal suit," said Karie as she quickly started to run towards the scene, her guitar in the case slung over her back. I followed in her direction.

The source of the destruction was Mr. Freeze. A bat-a-rang was thrown at his fish bowl helmet causing it to crack slightly. He started to look for the person that threw it.

"That explains why you heard ice," I commented. Karie nodded her head. "So what's the plan?"

That's when he saw me and Karie.

"I run in and distract him, you come from behind him, jump, and kick that fish bowl helmet as hard as you can," she explained. "Go!"

She dashed off towards Mr. Freeze. "Hey Mr. Freeze, what are you doing out on such a hot day like this, I thought you would've melted like Frosty the snowman by now. You know how much we would all appreciate you melting away and _not_ coming back some day!" Karie said. She sure knew how to make people mad.

"Why you ignorant little—" Mr. Freeze said as he fired the freeze gun at Karie. Karie dodged quickly. She then started to sing.

"Frosty the snowman! Was a happy jolly soul!" she sang while dodging his blasts like a breeze, now she was just teasing him. His pale face was turning red by the minute.

"Thumpity thump-thump, look at Frosty go!" sang Karie. That's when I ran, flipped and pulled my leg back to kick him. When I was close enough I swung my leg, then stepped on his fish bowl with my other foot and jumped down beside Karie. We gave each other props once I got down.

Freeze was now dizzy from the ringing inside the fish bowl. When he wasn't dizzy any more, he aimed his gun at me and Karie and set it at full force. By instinct I stood in front of Karie, with my arms out to protect her.

"Alexis!" Karie screamed in fright. I turned my head back and smiled at her.

"You've saved me one to many times, now it's my turn to return the favor," I said to her.

I braced my self for impact and closed my eyes. The pain never came. I opened my eyes to see a boy my age in front of me. He had black hair, and wore a black cape from what I could see, since his back was to me.

"The Boy Wonder," said Freeze. His fish bowl now had a lot more cracks in them. "The Batman sent you to take me back to prison didn't he?"

"Great, but I'm kinda in a hurry now," said The Boy Wonder. His voice sounds awfully familiar.

"Well then I'll just freeze you right now," said Freeze as he readied his blaster.

"Wasn't talking to you," said The Boy Wonder impatiently. That's when a shadow was looming over Freeze. It was Batman. He punched Freeze's helmet, cracking it open.

Suddenly The Boy Wonder turned around and smiled at me then left with Batman.

"Alexis!" I turn around behind me to be tackled to the ground by Karie. "You're ok!"

I chuckled at my sisters behaviour. "I am because of that Boy Wonder."

"Boy Wonder? Oh, you mean Batman's sidekick Robin," said Karie. "Anyways, never do that again! You scared the living daylights out of me!"

So his name is Robin. Well next time I see him I have to thank him and Batman too. "Come on let's go back to the mansion."

I walk out of the shower in my pajama's, a t-shirt one size to big and shorts. I was going to go to bed soon so I decided to go tell everyone good night.

"Night, Karie," I said as I opened her door to see her finishing off more homework.

"Night," she answered without taking her eyes off her homework.

I closed her door quietly and walked downstairs to find Alfred. I found him making his way towards his room.

"Good night, Alfred," I said and smiled at him.

"Good night Alexis," he replied and made his way back to his room.

I doubt Bruce and Dick are in their rooms. So I just went back to my room. I walked over to the balcony. When I sat down and looked at the stars I remembered that my eyes and hair were different when my powers were activated. I quickly ran to my bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. My eyes and hair were normal. Brown eyes and black hair with red streaks. I sighed. And made my way back to the balcony. I looked up at the stars like usual.

"I wish that I knew how to work these new powers, then maybe I could help people," I whispered, then fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Robin's Pov<p>

As I made my way from the Bat Cave to my room, I remembered that Alexis would always fall asleep on the balcony. I walked into her room quietly and made my way to the balcony. As always, Alexis would be sleeping with her back leaning against one of the walls on either side of the balcony door. I smiled. She was so beautiful when she slept. I gently picked her up bridal style and walked towards her bed. While I was making my way to her bed, she moved closer towards me and whispered something like 'thank you.' I was blushing like crazy, it's a good thing she's asleep. I placed her on the bed and pulled the covers over her.

"Good night Alexis," I said gently and walked out of her room.

When I was walking back to my room I heard Karie yell 'Stupid homework!' I chuckled quietly. When I entered my room I decided to take a shower then go to bed. After my shower, I lie awake in my bed thinking.

~Flashback ~

"_Robin, Alexis and Karie aren't normal people," said Batman._

"_What do you mean?"I asked intrigued by what Batman was saying. I was also angry, I'm not sure why but when he said that Alexis isn't a normal person I just became mad._

"_Alexis and Karie have special powers," stated Batman. "Karie has fox-like powers and can scare a person senseless just from looking someone in the eye," I nodded and gestured for him to continue._

"_Alexis on the other hand was gifted with slightly different and more dangerous powers. She has the powers of a red-tailed hawk, but she also has the gift of scaring someone senseless, maybe even to death, through eye contact, or when she screams, yells, pleads or cries," explained Batman. "You remember back at her house when she screamed stop, her dad suddenly fell to the ground, that was the first time she used that power."_

"_How do you know all this is true?" I asked. Everything Batman was telling me so far didn't make sense._

"_I met their mother in an accident 4 years ago. I couldn't save her, but I promised her that I would watch over her children," Batman said and explained everything that happened with their mother the telepathic, the danger ahead and how she contacted him in his dreams._

"_Do they know?"I asked after processing everything Batman just said._

"_Yes," Batman answered. "That's why we need them on team. It's safer for them. Plus we'll be able to help them."_

"_But won't our cover be blown?" I asked._

"_Maybe, but it's a chance that we have to take for them," said Batman._

"_Alright, so how do we get them on the team?" I questioned._

"_Well it's either they discover the Bat Cave,or we meet up with them in another accident," listed Batman in his monotone voice._

"_What makes you so sure that they'll agree to join?" I asked, Batman just had to choose today to overwhelm me._

"_After what happened today at the park, I know that they'll change their minds about joining the team," Batman said. "Now go get some rest."_

I wonder if Alexis and Karie will join the team? I hope so.

* * *

><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	7. A Team

**Gotham City, Wayne Manor**

**September 28TH 8:04 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

I woke up again in my bed, the soft blanket draped over me. _Who keeps doing this?_ I asked myself. _Oh well._ I got out of bed and got ready. _Maybe today I'll be able to tell the Batman that I want to join his team._ I sighed and walk downstairs for breakfast. To my surprise, both Dick and Bruce were sitting at the table.

"What, no meetings or classes today?" I asked the both of them. They both turned their heads left to right.

"Sundays are always days off," said Dick with a smile. I smiled back.

"Unless I get a call for a meeting," answered Bruce.

I nodded, as Karie came walking downstairs. She looked like she was mobbed by hungry birds, then got blown away in a tornado.

"Morning," I said sarcastically. "You look amazing Karie, what did you do with your hair?

Everyone started to laugh, but stopped when Karie gave us all death glares. Luckily, we didn't faint.

"What happened?" asked Alfred as he placed breakfast on the table.

"Stupid homework," she answered as she sat down and ate her breakfast. "I stayed up really late to get it _all_ done."

"You know you could've just done some today right?" Dick asked, confused by Karie's explanation.

"Well I needed at least one day off before I go back to school," she said.

"Oh right, you two do know that you have to get really good grades or I'm going to lecture you," said Bruce. Me and Karie dropped our jaws.

"Oh wait, I pass every subject with flying colours," said Karie.

"Yeah well that's because you always get the easiest teachers," I said rolling my eyes. Karie just shrugged and continued to eat her breakfast. "Well this is just great now I'm going to have to find a way to pass chemistry, worst subject of all."

"No it isn't," argued Dick. "Chemistry is the best. You get to learn what make things explode, what weird gooey things are and a lot of other strange things."

"I know, I can deal with strange and all, but it's the part where you have to learn about the chemical reactions, you know the formulas and stuff, it's so confusing," I said and sighed. "Guess I'm gonna get lectured."

"Or I could just hire a tutor," offered Bruce. Karie started to laugh. Everyone gave her questioning looks while I sighed.

"Thanks but no thanks Bruce. Last time I had a tutor, I learned nothing at all because the tutor kept going on about how I was a failure. He ended up getting pinned to the ground, booted out a window and in the hospital for who knows how long," I explained.

"Ok then, no tutor," said Bruce.

"I could tutor you," Dick said suddenly. "It's one of my best subjects."

I thought about it for a while. Dick would be a lot better tutor than the last one I had, he's better in science than Karie and I won't have to make Bruce pay any money. It's fool-proof!_ Plus you get to spend time with him, _said the voice in the back of my head. I thought about that. Spend more time with him. I smiled at that thought. "Alright you've got yourself a deal."

Dick smiled from ear to ear. "Alright then, I guess I'll tutor you as much as I can, and feel free to ask me questions whenever," he said as he got up and walked out of the kitchen.

"Where's he going?" asked Karie as she chewed on some pancakes drizzled with too much maple syrup, just the way she liked it.

"Video games, his gym, finish off some homework, sleep," listed Alfred. I got up and took my silverware to the sink. "You don't have to do that Alexis."

"It's alright," I answered with a smile. "I'm use to doing this, cooking dinner, cleaning up the house, you know, house chores." Everyone smiled at me.

"Well if you want to," said Alfred. I smiled a thank at him and washed everyone's dishes. When I was done I walked around the house. I didn't feel so well so I went and sat in Dick's private room. I know it was rude but, this room was the only one that would make me feel better. I walked around the room and stopped at the grandfather clock. I looked at it. _Dad loved these old classic machines. Dad…_

"Doesn't this room make you depressed at all?" asked a voice. I shrieked a little and placed a hand over my heart.

"Karie don't do that!" I screamed at her.

"Sorry, but doesn't it?" she asked again.

"Yeah it does, but it also makes me feel better, like mom and dad are actually in here," I answered as I placed my hand on the grandfather clock. It suddenly opened revealing a secret passage way.

"Shall we?" asked Karie as she made her way down. I nodded and followed.

We entered a large under ground cave. I looked at everything. There were metal platforms and stairs, some weird glass tubes, two weird holes on one side of the walls with some type of border around it, a large round floor in the middle with the bat mobile sitting in the middle of it, and a large computer set-up against one wall with the Batman symbol on it, a large key board and smaller computers plus a computer chair.

"This is-" Karie started.

"The Bat Cave," I cut her off.

"That means that Bruce is Batman!" exclaimed Karie as she slammed her fist into her hand.

"No wonder why he seemed so familiar and it felt like we met before!" I added face palming myself.

"Looks like you two finally found the Bat Cave," said a voice. Karie and I both screamed and turned around.

"Bruce, don't scare us like that!" yelled Karie.

"How come you didn't tell us?" I asked my eyes narrowing in on Bruce. He flinched ever so slightly. Bruce explained everything to us. He knew about our powers, our family, even mom contacted him!

"So now that you know all that, what about the offer I gave you about joining my team?" asked Bruce.

"Wait, if someone were to teach us how to use our powers who would it be?" I asked.

"Black Canary would work with Alexis' and Wonder Woman with Karie," suggested Bruce. "Although I would usually train you since you're here anyway."

Karie looked at me, I nodded.

"Alright fine we'll join," I said. Bruce nodded. "One second." He walked off somewhere and came back as Batman.

"Follow me," said Bruce as we went deeper into the Bat Cave. He stepped into the weird holes on the side of the wall and said that we will be transported through these. We stepped in as well.

"Batman A02, recognized," said the animated voice of a girl. It scanned Karie and I saying 'unrecognized'.

"Two guests of Batman A02," Bruce said.

"Recognized Batman A02 plus 2 guests," said the animated voice this time. The hole started to shine brightly.

"This way," directed Bruce, as he walked through the blinding light. Karie and I followed hesitantly. When we walked through and we appeared inside another cave.

"Here we are," said Bruce. "The secret location of the team."

"It's a lot bigger than your cave," commented Karie.

"Stay here you two, I have to go get into my suit and contact the league for acceptance of you two," said Bruce. Before me and Karie could even answer he disappeared.

"Alright now follow me," said Batman.

We followed Bruce to a large computer in the middle of another section of the cave. Bruce or should I say Batman, started to type away on the computer, that's when Superman and many others of the League appeared on the screen.

"Superman, I've found some new recruits that we could use for the team and they need our assistance," stated Batman.

"Alright explain," said Superman. Batman explained everything about us and our problem about The Light.

"Alright they're on the team, but you should contact Canary and Wonder Woman about taking them under their wing. Oh, and get them some costumes and some heroine names as well," said Superman before he stepped into the portal and walked off somewhere.

"Alright while I contact everyone, you two decide on your names and costumes," said Batman as he typed away.

"Alright so what should our names be?" I asked as I turned towards Karie.

"Your name should be bird like, and mine should be fox-like," said Karie as she thought.

"Um, how about Aviary or Valkyrie?" I asked Karie. She thought for a while before answering.

"Valkyrie because they're the women who choose who battles, who falls and who dies," Karie answered. I gave her a questioning look. "It's from Norse mythology and besides it matches your powers."

"Now your name… Okay, we've always thought that the japanese version of everything was cooler, so how do you say fox in japanese?" I suggested.

Karie's face lit up again. "Kitsune! You think of the best names!"

"Alright what about our costumes?" I asked since Batman was still talking to our future mentors.

"Oh! Mine is going to be a red bandana covering my face, a red shirt with sleeves that go up to my elbow, tight white shorts, and black combat boots!" exclaimed Karie. I sighed.

"And mine should be?" I asked raising my eyebrow at Karie.

"Um something that represents your name, your powers or looks cool?" suggested Karie.

"Thanks for the help," I said dryly. "Anyway, how about I base my costume off Valkyries too, you know like the in Norse mythology?"

"Whatever works," said Karie.

"Black Canary will train you two in close combat and self-defense. The other Leaguers are busy, so I'll have to teach the two of you as well," explained Batman.

"Alright, now about our costumes…" I started.

"Already got it covered," said Batman. "They should arrive soon."

"Hey Bats, came as fast as I could sorry I took so long," said the Flash as he suddenly appeared with our costumes in a separate bags.

"You made those?" I asked stunned, who knew the Flash could tailor clothes?

"Of course I did," he said sarcastically. "My wife made theses. She loves tailoring."

"Well then tell her we said thanks!" exclaimed Karie as she ran up to grab the bag with her costume in it. She took it out and stared at it in awe.

"The girls changeroom is over there," said Batman as he pointed in the direction of a corridor. "Take a right."

When me and Karie got out of the change room I was definitely amazed at the tailoring of Flash's wife. The metal boots and armor was so cool.

"Alright Batman, what about weapons?" I questioned when we met up with him at the giant computer.

"Show us what you have and we'll give it a try," said Karie. I looked over at her. She had a huge smile on her face.

"Kitsune try these red half sai's and Valkyrie, try this sword," said Batman as he threw the weapons at us. We caught them with ease, well Karie did, I almost dropped the sword.

"Can you balance this?" I asked, the sword was kinda heavy and it didn't feel right in my hand.

"I'll find you one, just use it for now," said Batman. "Now test them out."

"How?" me and Karie asked. Batman stayed silent and just looked at us intensely.

"Alright then, let's go Karie!" I said getting into the best battle stance I could.

"If you want to get your butt kicked," said Karie as she also got into battle stance. We fought for who knows how long. When Karie finally let her guard down, I jumped at the chance and pointed her own sai at her neck.

"You win," she said in defeat.

"Wow what a work out," I said wiping the sweat off my fore head.

"After plenty of training you'll build up more endurance, but that was alright," commented Batman.

"Thanks," said Karie flatly.

"You'll meet the team tomorrow, for now just change and we'll go home," said Batman.

~Wayne Manor~

I stared up at the stars. _What a weird day. I find the Bat Cave, I figure out Batman's real identity, I sign up to be part of a team, I meet the Flash, get my costume and hero name, fight my sister and come back home like nothing happened at all. _I sigh_. I'm definitely over-whelmed. Oh well, might as well sleep it off. Tomorrow I get to meet my new team._

Right before I closed my eyes I felt someone at my door. I couldn't tell who it was because of sleep trying to take over me. I felt the person walk toward the balcony. _This must be the person who's been helping me._ I closed my eyes. I felt the person standing right beside me. The person stood there for a moment. I heard the person sigh. _Must be a boy._ He picked me up bridal style. His warmth was so comforting, that I snuggled closer to him. He then looked down at me, then continued making his way to my bed. He placed me down gently and tucked me in. While I felt him head towards the door, I sat up and rubbed my eyes.

"Thank you," I said. He turned around. I could see him clearly now. It was Batman's sidekick, Robin. "I've been meaning to thank you for a while now."

He just smiled at me and then left.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Bat Cave<strong>

**September 29TH 8:39 a.m.**

Batman, Karie and I got into our costumes and went through Batman's zeta-tube. When we arrived this time, there were sidekicks of most of the members in the league. There was Kid Flash, Artemis, Miss Martian, Aqualad, Superboy and Robin. Artemis was fighting with Kid Flash while everyone else just stood by watching.

"Team," said Batman. Everyone suddenly stopped and turned in our direction. "We have two new members. Meet Kitsune and her sister, Valkyrie."

"Hi," we said and waved.

"Your mission today is to show them around the cave," said Batman and with that he left.

Everyone quickly gathered around us. The first to speak up was a red-haired boy who wore a bright red and yellow suit.

"Hey, I'm Kid Flash," said KF showing off to Kitsune. "Fastest boy on Earth."

"Quit it Bay Watch!" scolded the blond archer. "I'm Artemis."

"Hi, I'm Miss Martian, but most call me Miss M for short," greeted the martian. She had a huge smile on her face, almost as if she was happy there were more girls on the team now.

"Superboy," waved the buff boy. Then he gestured to a large white wolf. "That's Wolf."

"Aqualad, the team's leader," said the boy with gills. His voice was calm, but sounded serious at the same time.

"Robin," said the Boy Wonder with a smirk.

"So are we getting a tour?" I asked.

"Right this way," said Miss M.

"Well that was pretty cool," I said as I put my hands behind my head and we walked into the kitchen/living room area.

"Now what?" asked Kitsune.

"Well we just talk, train, relax and wait for missions," explained Miss M.

"So you ladies enjoying your first day here?" asked KF. _Uh what a flirt._

"It would be better if some guy we barely know would stop hitting on us!" exclaimed Kitsune as she started to spin her sai's.

"Ha, Bay Watch just got told by the new girl, nice one!" complemented Artemis, as she gave Kitsune a high-five.

I smiled. "This is definitely gonna be a day we'll remember."

The rest of the day was just filled with us getting to know each other. Well except Robin. He said that Batman banned him from revealing his identity. Strange but then again, Batman was always mysterious. I think the strangest part is that I feel like I already know Robin, he seems so familiar. His voice, his personality. Oh well, I just wonder how we're going to do as a team on our first mission together.

* * *

><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	8. Lame Metaphors

**This chapter starts around half-way in the episode 'Revelation'.**

* * *

><p><strong>Bayou Bartholomew<strong>

**October 1ST 6:52 p.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

"Sorry Boy Wonder, but I'm putting an end to your little _reconnaissance _mission," Poison Ivy said, sprouting vines and shrubs of all kinds to trip me.

I ran from Ivy, easily flipping and jumping over her plants. I couldn't keep this up for long though, we were in the middle of a bayou, and I had to bring down that antenna to the plant attacks. _There's got to be some way to distract her._ With Miss M being chased by Humanite, and Ivy on my tail I was running out of ideas.

* * *

><p><strong>Valkyrie's Pov<strong>

"They awaken," said a voice. I slowly got up, keeping a hand to my head. Looking around I noticed that Artemis, Wolf, Superboy, Kid, Kitsune, Aqualad and I were all stuck in a flying cage. "You are certain this will keep them?"

"The cage is impenetrable," said Wotan. "Even the Superboy has no chance of escaping."

"You are not the only one trained in the Mystic Arts Wotan," Aqualad said, his hands latching on to the golden bars of the cage. The marks on his arms glowed a bright blue, but the cage only drained him.

"Aqualad, save your strength," I told him gently, putting a hand to his shoulder.

"Please Atlantean, do not pretend you are in my league," Wotan smirked.

I glared at him, but my thoughts were trying to think of a way to get us out of here. I was afraid to use my voice, scared that Aqualad might even fall for it.

* * *

><p><strong>Robin's Pov<strong>

In the middle of my jump, one of Ivy's vines hit me and sent me to the mud-filled ground. Standing up, I was surrounded by the botanical vines. I stood ready to make a quick get away, but they were cut from all sides and fell to the ground.

_"Robin, she's making contact,"_ Miss M informed me.

_"Valkyrie?"_ I asked, the slight hope in my voice noticable.

_"No,"_ she answered.

I looked up to see Wotan, Vertigo and Atom with a cage above us. I noticed the camouflage of the bio-ship flying towards them, knocking Wotan. The cage disappeared and the rest of the team fell from it. This was the perfect distraction.

* * *

><p><strong>Valkyrie's Pov<strong>

I landed in the mud, and quickly jumped at Humanite. I managed a kick in the face, but he caught my other foot in mid-swing and aimed his gun at me. I heard a snarl from behind me, and Wolf latched on to his arm, forcing him to drop me. As I fell, I pulled my sword out and managed a cut to his other arm. He almost dropped his gun. In the midst of everything, he failed to see Superboy coming at him from his right, sending a loud blow to the face.

"You alright?" Superboy asked. I stood beside him now, spinning my sword around to get the feel of it. I could already tell that Robin and Miss M left for the control center, and that Aqualad, Kid, Artemis and Kitsune were up against Vertigo, Atom, and Ivy.

"Thanks to Wolf, I'm perfectly fine," I shot a smile at Wolf as thanks, then jumped behind Humanite, while Superboy took his left and Wolf to his right. When he didn't make a move but turn his head, we looked in the same direction to see the Injustice League's antenna decorated like a Christmas tree. I smiled, knowing fully well that those were Robin's bird-a-rangs. They exploded one by one, sending the over-sized plant in flames.

Superboy, Wolf and I took this chance to get Humanite, when Atom came flying at Superboy. I had already jumped at Humanite but was thrown back into a tree.

"Kill them, kill them all," Vertigo said.

I didn't have the chance to even get up, when volts of electricity were sent throughout my body. I let out a cry, the pain never stopping.

"The Helmet of Fate," Wotan breathed. The shocks stopped abruptly, but the pain and the adrenaline still rushed through me.

"No Aqualad, don't!" Kid exclaimed. I looked up, but was blinded by a sudden bright light. In Aqualad's place now stood the Doctor Fate.

"Wotan, you are mine," Doctor Fate said, flying up to be leveled with Wotan. They shot some type of beam at each other, but Fate's was easily stronger than Wotan's. He was slammed against the dome of the Injustice League control center, and the yellow beam, turned into chains.

"Wonder Boy, you are mine," Joker laughed, imitating Doctor Fate. I got up, my eyes widening to see Joker with a knife and eyes set on Robin.

"Valkyrie go, me, wolf and Kitsune can handled Humanite," Superboy said. I looked him in the eyes, and knew that Superboy somehow knew how much I cared about him.

I heard the splash of water and saw Robin dodging all of Joker's swings with the knife. Back hand-springing to get some distance, I noticed how tired Robin was.

"Always wanted to carve this bird," Joker smiled sadistically.

"You super villans and your lame metaphors," I said from behind Joker. When he turned to look at me, I smiled inwardly. I got his attention.

"What's this? Another another bird, or a featherless chicken?" Joker asked, laughing at his own joke.

Rolling my eyes, I took this advantage to leg sweep him. He fell instantly into the muddy water. Once I got up, I made sure to get some distance from the guy. I stood beside Robin, my sword tucked in its sheath. Letting my eyes fall on him, I asked, "Are you okay?"

"Tired, but I'll manage," he answered, sending me a weary smile. I grinned a bit, good to know he was okay.

Joker stood, his head slumped. "You little birds sure are annoying. Good thing I like drumsticks."

He pulled out a second knife and this time came at me. I ducked to dodge him, and tried to sweep him again, but he was ready this time. He stabbed one of the knives into my left shoulder-blade. I let out a real, agonizing scream this time.

"Valkyrie!" I heard Robin scream.

I felt another huge amount of heat for the second time, and almost passed out again. Looking up, I noticed that Joker was blade-less, and that Robin was cradling me in his arms. I shot him a small smile, trying to let him know that I was okay. That was an understatement, because I really passed out after that.

* * *

><p><strong>Robin's Pov<strong>

"Always wanted to carve this bird," Joker smiled.

"You super villans and your lame metaphors," said Valkyrie. I blinked a few times, surprised that she was calmly talking to Joker.

"What's this? Another another bird, or a featherless chicken?" Joker asked, laughing at his own joke.

Valkyrie suddenly dropped to the ground and swept Joker with a leg, before swiftly getting back up beside me. "Are you okay?"

"Tired, but I'll manage," I answered, smiling at her. At least now I got a little breather.

Our attention turned to the green-haired freak, who had his head slumped. "You little birds sure are annoying. Good thing I like drumsticks."

Joker pulled out a second knife from his jacket and went for Valkyrie. She ducked to avoided his swings and tried for another leg-sweep, but the unthinkable happened. Joker stabbed Valkyrie in the shoulder, blood staining her uniform and his hand. The most horrifying scream escaped her, as she fell forward into the water.

"Valkyrie!" I screamed, quickly running to her side. I heard Batman throw a bat-a-rang at Joker, his knife sinking in the water. I cradled Valkyrie like I did the time at the gymnastics tryout. The only thing is, I never wanted it to happen again. Her eyes looked tired and trying to focus on me. The corners of her lips rose just a bit, before she passed out from exhaustion, adrenaline and maybe even the rush of all the Leaguers that now stood with us.

"It's over," Batman deadpanned.

"There will be another day," Vertigo promised, raising his hands up in defeat.

"Another day? Another day?!" Joker exclaimed maniacally. "There won't be another day. Not for any of us!"

More plants sprouted from under the water, and their seeds exploded.

"Joker-Venom spores! Don't breathe!" Batman ordered, knocking Joker out.

I brought Valkyrie closer to me and brought my cape in front of us, trying to protect the both of us from the laughing gas. Or was it laughing spores?

"Fear not," Doctor Fate spoke as he rose above all of us. He summoned his symbol of life and sucked up all the spores like it was a vacuüm. "Fate has intervened!"

"What were you thinking?! How could you let him put on the Helmet?" KF exclaimed at Doctor Fate/Aqualad. "Nabu will never release him now. Kaldur will be trapped inside forever."

There was a silence. I stood with a unconcsious Valkyrie in my arms (bridal style). Slowly, Doctor Fate took off his helmet, and my good pal Kaldur was back.

"Nabu let you go?" KF asked, a relieved smile on his face.

"He almost did not; your friend Kent was most helpful," Kaldur answered. He smiled as he continued. "He says 'Hello'."

"We're done here. The Super Villan Secret Society has been neutralized," Batman said. "As for your performance... It was satisfactory."

"Yes!" Kitsune exclaimed suddenly. We all stared at her. "Sorry, first mission remember?"

"Kid Flash, you need to get your arm looked at, and Valkyrie...?" Batman trailed off.

"She's still unconscious, and has a knife through her shoulder," I debriefed. "Medical attention would be nice."

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Bat Cave<strong>

**October 1ST 11:32 p.m.**

I wanted to check on Alexis so badly, knowing that she was upstairs in her bed, but remembered that she needed to rest.

"We found this picture in the Injustice League's control center," Batman said, handing me the small photo frame. There was a smiling young woman with long brown hair and smiling brown eyes. She looked a lot like Alexis. "It's Alexis' and Karie's mother."

"So finding it in the Injustice's Leagues base, that can only mean that—"

"Right, and until I have enough evidence, do not tell Karie or Alexis," said Batman.

Placing the picture near Batman's computer, I started to make my way upstairs when a new thought came into mind. "Could I tell them my identity?"

"They managed to figure out mine, and find the Bat Cave and have only been here for 9 days," was all Bats said.

After taking a quick shower, changing out of uniform and throwing on some pajamas, I gave in and decided to check on Alexis. She slept quietly in the king-sized bed. I smiled to myself. _I'll tell you some other time._

~?~

"Impressive. The plant creatures have proven their usefulness as potential weapons. More importantly, the so-called 'heroes' believe that our secret society has been revealed and crushed. With the Injustice League serving as our proxys, we are once again free of impurities," said L-1. "And Shadows still conceal, our Light."

* * *

><p><strong>Review, alert and fav!<strong>


	9. My Guardian Knight

**Disclaimer: The song Alexis sings, is from the Digimon Movie: Runaway Locomon. Check it out.**

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**October 2ND 6:56 a.m.**

**Dick's Pov**

I woke up to someone singing. I listened more carefully and realized that Alexis was already up and ready to go. I listened to her voice for a few more minutes, before getting out of bed.

"_Every morning, every night_

_You watch over me like the sun in the sky_

_Every morning and every night_

_Will you promise me you'll be_

_Will you promise me you'll be_

_My guardian knight?"_

Who's this guardian knight she's singing about? I quickly dismayed the thought and headed downstairs.

"Morning," greets Alexis.

I smiled. "Morning, ready for school?"

"Yep," Alexis replied cheerfully.

"I honestly don't understand how you can be so cheerful about going to school?" Karie complains.

"Hey, it's not our fault that you're not a morning person," Alexis argues back, placing her hands in her hips.

I chuckled. "Hey I think we should head to school."

**~Gotham Academy~**

"Hey Dick, I think I'm only in your history class," says Karie, looking over our schedules. "Oh wait, we have lunch together too."

"When do you have lunch Alexis?" I asked.

"Um," says Alexis looking over at our schedules than back at hers. I see her forming a smile on her face. "Same time as you guys."

"Great then we'll see you then sis," says Karie.

"Bye," waves Alexis, and cheerfully makes her way to her homeroom. _I wonder why she's so happy?_

At lunch, I made my way to my locker then headed over to Alexis' so we could walk there together, since the cafeteria is just a short walk from her locker. Besides, Karie had disappeared with Artemis.

When I saw Alexis putting somethings away in her locker and taking somethings out for next class, I put on a smile and made my way to her. My smile was wiped off when I saw a boy walk up to her. I think his name was Shane. A junior like me and a typical jock.

Alexis noticed him approaching her and turned around, her textbooks were sent flying to the ground. The guy started to help pick them up, while I saw Alexis start to blush. I was so focused on them, I didn't realize that I was grinding my teeth together and clenching my fist.

* * *

><p><strong>Alexis' Pov<strong>

I was putting my textbooks away in my locker when I felt some guy walk up to me. I turned around, my textbooks falling to the ground.

"I'm so sorry!" I quickly exclaim, before starting to pick up my books. He started to help me pick them up too.

"It's alright, here," he said passing over my books that he was able to pick up.

"Thank you," I say, blushing slightly. Partially from embarassment and partially from the fact that a guy like him was talking to me. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm fine. A tough guy like me can handle anything," he said, smirking. _So you're the cocky, show-off type? I wonder what I should do, play the damsel in distress, or be equally as cocky?_

"Right, I'm sure you can," I said. _Let's try damsel in distress. _"Dilan."

"Shane. Um listen, I saw you trying out for the gymnastics team, and thought that you did amazing," he said.

I blushed even more. "Um, thank you."

"Right, um anyways, I wanted to ask you something," he says.

"Alright, what is it?" I ask.

"Would you like to hang out some time?" he asked, a cocky grin appearing on his face.

"Um yeah sure, that sounds great. When and where?" I ask.

"How about this Friday, movies, pick you up at 8?" he suggested.

"Can't wait," I giggled, he smiled and walked into the cafeteria proud. _What an idiot! He's just like any of them, falling for the innocent girl, acting all tough and cocky like they're afraid of nothing. Typical, let's just see how well he can deal with me when I act as equally as cocky?_

"Hey, what was that all about?" Dick asked, with a slight edge in his voice.

"What, oh, Shane just asked me out on a date," I replied like it was nothing.

"Well isn't this an interesting way to start off the week?" Dick jokes.

"What? Are you jealous?" I ask.

"Please, of a guy like him, never in a life time," Dick answers, smiling.

I smiled as well, a geniune one, unlike the ones I faked at Shane. "Let's go, I'm starving."

"What took you guys so long?" asked Karie.

"I came from science," replied Dick.

"I was at my locker, when Shane came up to me and asked me out," I replied.

"He WHAT?" Karie screamed, loud enough for only for people at our table to hear. "My baby sister's growing up!"

"Hey!" I argue.

"So is this your first date?" asked Artemis, nibbling on a fry.

"Yep, and I plan to make it memorable," I answer. I suddenly feel Dick heating up. "You okay?"

"Fine," he answered hollowly. I gave him a look of concern before he flashed me a smile of assurance.

"Well tell me how it goes, I heard that most people who go out with jocks, either end up as their girlfriends, or they end up being used dolls," said Artemis, finishing her fries.

"Please, I could tell him to do whatever I want to, if it goes that bad," I say.

"I swear if he lays one finger on you, he's dead," said Karie.

"Protective much," I say, earning a look from Karie.

_*Ring-Ring*_

"Well gotta head to my next class, see you guys later," I say and wave.

**~Wayne Manor~**

_I wonder what was wrong with Dick? He wasn't his usually cheerful self today. I wonder if he's okay? Maybe I should go talk to him._

_*Knock Knock*_

"Come in," I say. Surprisingly enough it was Dick.

"Hey," he says, closing the door gently.

"Something wrong?" I ask.

"I just had a question," he answered. I patted the empty space beside me on the right side of my bed.

"What is it?" I ask, tilting my head to my left as he sat down.

"Well, I woke up to you singing today," he starts. _He heard that? _I feel my cheeks heat up a bit. "And I was wondering about who you were singing about?"

I was about to answer before I stopped myself. I can't just say _'I was singing about you.'_ So what should I say?

"I was singing about, well I don't know," I lie. My eyes suddenly started to feel a tired. I soon fell asleep, my head landing on something soft and warm.

* * *

><p><strong>Dick's Pov<strong>

_So you really weren't singing about someone were you? _Something about the way she answered, makes me think that she's lying.

"I also wanted to tell you something importa-," I suddenly felt something warm at my chest. I look down to find Alexis fast asleep. I smiled, my eyes softening. _I wonder who you were singing about, you little songbird. I guess I'll have to tell you my secret some other time._I carefully tucked us both in her bed making sure that she was still nestled safely on my chest. I kiss her on the forehead thinking about one thing.

_You might be going out with a player on Friday, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to stop from letting you being taken away from my grasp._

* * *

><p><strong>Alexis' Pov<strong>

_Why do I feel another body beside me? _I thought as I awoke slightly. I looked in the direction of the source to find a boy sleeping beside me, his arms wrapped around me.

"AHHHHHH!" I screamed, as I pushed the person out of the bed. I heard him groan in pain when he made contact to the cold tiled floor.

"What happened?" asked Bruce as he, Karie and Alfred quickly rushed into my room.

"Nothing just a nightmare, I think I might've kicked something off the stand too," I replied, my cheeks pink.

"I got up out of bed and ran with my sai's for no reason," I heard Karie mutter, my blush turning even darker.

"Sorry for the trouble," I said.

"It's alright, as long as you're not injured," said Bruce before everyone left.

"Man can you scream," said a voice. I shrieked a bit more, before remembering that it was the person I pushed. The person got up, rubbing the side of their head. That's when I realized the person was a boy, my age, black hair, blue eyes…

"Dick? Why were you in my bed with your arms around me?" I pratically screamed.

"You suddenly fell asleep while we were talking and you fell asleep on me, so I didn't want to wake you or anything and tucked you in," he explained.

"Alright, but that still doesn't explain why you were sleeping in _my bed_ with _your arms_ around _me_?" I asked again.

"You're a light sleeper so I couldn't move around so much and had to fall asleep with you there. My arms, well I was cold so…" he trailed off.

"It's alright," I say, taking in what he said. "Just don't scare me like that again."

Dick smirked in relief. "Promise, well I'll see you downstairs." With that said, he quickly made his way out of my room and to his.

I wrapped myself in my blankets and scooted over to Dick's previous spot. It was still warm and had a scent of vanilla with a hint of something… something mischievous. I snuggled into the spot for a while before getting up and getting ready.

**~At Lunch~**

I felt that same warmth from yesterday walk up behind me again. This time I put all of my stuff in my locker before turning around.

"Yes?" I asked innocently.

"Well I was wondering where to pick you up, I didn't get your address or your number," said Shane.

"Oh here," I said, finding a scrap paper and a pen. I wrote down my number. "Here."

He looked over the paper. "There's no address."

"I'll meet you there, I prefer walking," I answered.

"I could pick you up and walk you there and back," he offered.

"Sure," I answered, taking the paper and writing 'the park fountain' as an address. "Let's meet there."

Shane looked like he was about to ask another question, but dismayed it. "Kay, and we're still up for Friday, right?"

"Yep," I answered.

"Great," he winked. "Catch you later, 'lexis."

"See you," I said and turned back around to my locker.

"So what happened this time?" asked Dick, appearing out of nowhere again.

"He asked for my number and an address," I replied.

"What did you write for the address?" asked Dick.

"The park fountain, like he'll ever make it to the front door of the mansion," I answered.

Dick smiled. "Come on, Artemis and Karie are waiting for us again."

"So what happened this time?" asked Karie, as Dick and I sat down.

"P.E," said Dick.

"Shane," I said.

"What did he ask you this time?" questioned Artemis.

"He asked for my number and my address," I said, taking a drink of my water.

"I have a feeling that this is the start of a beautiful relationship," said Artemis.

I did a spit-take to my side, so no one got hit. "W-What?"

"Oh come on, he's pretty hot and a jock, you're as cute and fiesty as a cheerleader, I'm seeing a match," Artemis explained.

"Wow, now that I think about it, you are so right," agreed Karie. "Amazing Dilan, your first date could be the love of your life."

"Pfft, yeah right. A cocky jerk like him is nothing like me," I argued.

"Well your not even close to a jerk," spoke Dick. _I almost forgot Dick was here. Oh great, Artemis and Karie just had to embarress me in front of him, didn't they?_

"But when it comes to cocky, well, let's just say you're very competitive," said Artemis.

I frowned. _Am I really like Shane?, I mean, sure we're both competitive, but do we really make a good couple?_

"Oh cheer up. You never know, maybe on your date, Shane could do something totally unexpected and _snap, _your chances of being a couple may become deadly low," said Karie.

I didn't say anything afterwards since I was still thinking about how much alike Shane and I are.

**~Day of the Date~**

"M'gann!" I called, as I walked into the cave.

"I'm in the kitchen!" she called.

"M'gann I need your help," I said walking into the kitchen.

"What is it?" asked M'gann. She placed a grilled cheese on a plate, then placed it in my hands.

"Thank you. Now can we go to my room and talk about something important," I said.

"Alright," said M'gann.

"What is it?" asked M'gann again as she closed the door.

"Well you see, I'm going on a date with a boy from school tonight and I have no idea what to do, say, or wear," I said.

"No problem. So where is he taking you?" asked M'gann.

"The movies," I said, taking a bite out of my grilled cheese. "This is amazing."

"I'm glad you like it," smiled M'gann. "What movie?"

"I'm not sure," I answered. "I'm pretty sure he's going to let me choose."

"Alright, so before I help you I have one question," said M'gann.

"Yes?"

"Do you like him?" she asked.

"Um, I'm not sure," I replied, blushing.

"Your blushing, meaning you do like him," joked M'gann, making my blush even bolder.

"Alright, so if he asks you any questions answer it truthfully unless you don't want to,"starts M'gann.

"Okay," I say, listening intently.

"Now if he makes a move on you during the movie, you either accept it, or you seem uncomfortable and tell him to move. If he doesn't move, move yourself," said M'gann.

"Hmmm," I said in thought.

"Now, on to what you should wear. This is a regular, simple date. He might take you out to eat after the movie. So something casual, with a hint of formal," said M'gann.

"How about a navy blue blouse, some jeans and some converse?" I suggested.

M'gann examined me for a moment before speaking. "I think that would look amazing on you."

"Thank you M'gann, for all your help," I say and hug her. I only make exceptions to hugs when I think the person deserves it, I give them one, and M'gann.

"No problem. If you ever need girl help, I'm here," M'gann said.

"Got it," I say before running to the portal.

"Reconized: Valkyrie B10," said the robotic female voice. I walked through the portal and ended up back at the bat cave. I quickly ran up to my room to get ready.

"The blouse isn't all that bad," I say examining myself. "The jeans and the converse still say that I'm not a girly girl either."

_*Knock Knock*_

"Can I come in?" asked Karie.

"Yes," I say.

"You look amazing!" exclaimed Karie.

"Thanks, M'gann helped me," I say. Karie suddenly hugged me.

"My little sister's all grown up," she whispers.

I hug her back. "I'll be back by 10."

"You better be or Shane is going to feel the wrath of-"

"Karie," I cut her off.

"What?" she asks.

"You are so over-protective," I say.

"Well that's what sisters do," she says.

"True, anyways I should get going to the park," I said.

"Stay safe," warned Karie.

"Don't worry," I said, making my way out of my room.

"Alfred I'm leaving, I'll be back by 10!" I called out.

"Do you need me to drive you there?"asked Alfred, suddenly emerging from his room.

"No, I'll walk," I answer.

"Do be careful. Master Bruce and everyone else will certainly worry," says Alfred.

"I'll be fine," I say.

"Alexis wait!" called Dick, sliding down the railing of the staircase and landing in front of me. "Here."

"What's this?" I ask, examining the small item in Dick's hand. It was a small bobby pin with a songbird on it.

"For luck," he says and clips my bangs up.

"T-thank you," I managed to say and hugged him. "Well I better not keep him waiting, bye."

"Master Dick, where did you get that pin?" asked Alfred.

"Something I made while I was bored," Dick answered, a sly smile creeping up his face.

"I would ask you something, but I think I'd rather get my answer later," said Alfred walking back to his room.

* * *

><p>When I reached the fountain Shane wasn't there yet. I decided that I should wait for him, so I sat on the edge of the fountain.<p>

"Sorry to keep you waiting," said a voice. I turn around to see Shane rubbing his neck, embarassed.

"It's alright," I say.

"You look great," he says.

"Thank you. You look nice too," I complement. He actually looked pretty nice. Black leather jacket, green plaid, some black jeans and some sneakers. Casual, but formal enough for a guy, and he made it work.

"Shall we go?" he asks, holding his arm out for me to lock mine with.

"We shall," I answer, locking my arm with his.

"So what movie should we watch?" he asked as we entered the cinema.

"How about…Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief?" I suggested.

"Sure," Shane said.

"You go get some food, I'll go get the tickets," I said.

"Got it," said Shane and he went off towards the popcorn.

After paying for the tickets, I walked around trying to find Shane and found him at the drinks.

"Hey, I got the tickets," I said.

"Great, I got caramel popcorn. What drink do you want?" he asked.

"Doesn't matter," I said.

After a few seconds he got us both drinks and we headed for our theater.

"I think it's time to go in," I said, noticing how people had already started to walk in.

The movie started and everything was going pretty well so far. Shane has been really kind, he didn't mind this movie and he hasn't made a single move on me yet. Well that was until I felt an arm around my shoulders. I shivered slightly. This felt odd, I let him know that I was uncomfortable by moving in my seat slightly. He was persistent, and didn't move his arm. Instead, he took this as a sign that I was cold and needed warmth, so he scooted closer to me and pulled me closer towards him, his arm now around my waist.

"Shane I'm-" I started but was frozen when I saw him leaning in._ He wants to kiss me. My first kiss. What should I do? M'gann never told me what to do if he did something as bold as this!_ I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away from me. "I'm uncomfortable."

He looked a bit shocked from my response, his face did soften though. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok," I said, placing a hand on his. "Can I tell you a secret?"

"Of course," he said.

"I've never been kissed before," I said.

"I find that hard to believe," he said.

"Really, and why is that?" I asked.

"Well, because your so, so amazing. You have the most amazing voice, you're an athlete, you have the greatest personality, your funny, and your beautiful," Shane admitted.

It was now my turn to be shocked. "Do you really mean all that?"

Shane put his hand on top of the one that I had placed on his other hand and spoke, "Of course I do."

I kissed him on the cheek. "You are so sweet."

After that I let him put his arm around my waist, while I leaned on his chest. _Best first date ever!_

"So, where do you want to go now?" I asked, as we walked out of the cinema.

"Wanna grab something to eat?" he suggested.

"Sure, where too?"

"Let's head over to that restaurant across the street," he said.

"So what do you want?" he asked, looking at the menu.

"I'm fine, I'll just drink some water," I replied.

"Alright. Excuse me, waiter?" Shane called.

"How may I help you?" asked the waiter.

"Can I get some caesar salad?" Shane asked.

"Of course," the waiter said then quickly scurried off to the kitchen.

"I just realized something. I know nothing about you," I said.

"Well what do you want to know?" he asked.

"Full name, date of birth, hobbies, favourites, family," I listed.

"Shane Breeze, Febuary 25, listening to music, sports, mom Gwen Breeze, dad Tyler Breeze, older brother Dale Breeze," Shane answered. "What about you?"

"Alexis Dilan Henderson, September 26, playing piano, singing, sports, older sister Karie Blaire Henderson, mom…" I froze.

"Alexis? Are you okay?" asked Shane, concerned.

"Yeah I'm fine. Oh hey, look your foods coming," I said changing the subject. I knew that Shane wanted to find out why I froze at the mention of my mom, and that he was worried that he did something. When we were done eating, Shane offered to walk me home.

"It's alright," I said.

"Are you sure? It's pretty late out and you know how dangerous it gets," said Shane.

"Don't worry, I'm a tough girl. I can take care of myself," I said more gently. "And don't worry about what happened back at the restaurant. It wasn't your fault." I kissed him quickly on the cheek and left. I felt him still standing there, his cheeks heating up. I laughed quietly.

**~Wayne Manor~**

"I'm home!" I called as I entered the mansion. I saw Karie run out of her room and jump down past all the steps. "Careful!"

"Calm down, I'm fine," said Karie. "So how'd the date go?"

"It went better than I thought it would," I replied.

"Tell me what happened!" exclaimed Karie excitedly.

"Tomorrow. I'm plenty tired, and a growing girl needs her sleep," I said.

"Alright, as long as you answer every question I ask you," said Karie.

"Yeah yeah, now can you please go to bed?" I asked.

"Nope, I'm not tired," Karie said.

"Then leave me alone for now," I said.

"Ok!" exclaimed Karie. _Why did my sister have to be so jumpy during the night?_

I walked into my room and took a shower. I got into some clean clothes and jumped on to my bed. There were so many thoughts running through my head. _Maybe your not like the other jocks. _I thought. _Artemis was right though, you and me do have a lot in common. We have an older sibling, we like music and we enjoy sports. Plus you're pretty cute when you're in shock. Maybe we do make a good couple…_

"Alexis?" asked a voice. I identified it as Dick.

"Come in," I said.

"How'd the date go?" he asked plopping down next to me on my bed.

"Better than I expected," I answered.

"Did he do anything?" Dick asked seriously.

"What? Well kinda, but I stopped him before he could do anything worse," I said.

"So do you plan on going out with him again?" asked Dick, looking me in the eye. I stared into them for a moment and realized that it was a slightly darker shade of blue at the moment.

"That actually would be nice," I said. "Oh yeah, here's the pin back." I took off the pin and placed it in his hands.

"It's alright, you can keep it. Besides, what am I suppose to do with it?" Dick joked.

"True. Well then thanks for it," I said, placing it on my night stand.

"No problem," said Dick.

"Hey Dick?" I asked.

"Yeah?"

"Do you mind if you could stay here until I fall asleep? I'm afraid of getting nightmares," I say.

"Sure," he answered without hesitation.

"Thank you," I whispered, before falling asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Dick's Pov<strong>

_I hope you don't get any nightmares. I don't want to hear you screaming again. It makes me think that you're in trouble or pain, and I'm out of reach to help protect you._ I thought. Alexis had just fallen asleep. She looked so beautiful even in this dark lighting. I looked over at the pin she left on her nightstand. I picked it up in my hands and messed around with it again. I turned off the built in camera I put in it._ It's a good thing I built this thing to turn off and on..._

"Ha, no offence coach, but I think he's right," I heard Alexis say, laughing lightly.

I chuckled. _She's dreaming about when we first met._ _I guess there aren't going to be any nightmares tonight._ I brushed the back of my hand over the side of her face. _Maybe I should start spending more time with you._ I thought. _Yeah, I'll ask you if you want to hang out tomorrow._

"Goodnight, Alexis," I whispered and walked out of her room quietly.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted or faved! Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	10. Alfred

**Gotham City, Wayne Manor**

**October 3RD 11:24 a.m.**

**Dick's Pov**

After breakfast I decided to take Alexis to a few of my most favourite places. First to the arcade, the pizza parlor, the park and finally, my little secret room down in the Bat Cave. That's when I'll tell her my secret identidy. Or maybe I should tell her now? Uh, I can't even make a fool proof plan when it comes to Alexis!

"Hey Dick," says Alexis as she walks out of her room. _Time to get this over with._

"Hey Alexis," I said.

"What's up?" she asks.

"I was just about to ask you if you wanted to come with me to a few of my favourite places for the day…" I said sorta non-chalantly, even adding a confident smirk at the end.

Alexis' eyes grew wide after I finished. _The plan just started and it's already going disasterous. Heavy on the **dis**._

"Okay, when do we leave?" she agreed.

"Wanna go now?" I asked.

"Sure," she agreed. "Just let me get something." Alexis quickly went back into her room before emerging out wearing the songbird pin I gave her. I couldn't help but smile.

I was about to complement her and say, "You look great," but what came out of my mouth was, "I'm guessing that you like the pin I made?"

Alexis nodded her head before gently pushing me down the stairs, her hands on my shoulders. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

><p>As we entered the arcade, I turned to look over on my right to see Alexis staring around at all of the games. "Come on, let's play that one." I took Alexis by the hand and pulled her over to one of my favourite games, a racing one, where you get to sit on a fake motorcycle and turn it and drive it around. "Bet I'll beat you."<p>

"We'll see," said Alexis before she got on one of the motorcycles and chucked in a few quarters.

After around 8 minutes, I beat Alexis by a couple of minutes.

"Told you I'd win," I smirked as I looked over at her. She was making an annoyed pouting face, that I couldn't have found any cuter.

"I want a rematch," said Alexis, before chucking more quarters.

"If you want to lose again," I smiled before turning to face the screen. I could feel Alexis glare at me from the corner of my eyes, which only made we smile wider.

After another 8 minutes, Alexis and I tied. I turned to look over at her and said, "You know you still didn't beat me." She rolled her eyes before saying that she wanted to play another game. I took her over to the snowboarding game where you have to race as fast as you can away from an angry yeti and an avalanche at the same time.

"I'll beat you this time," said Alexis as she put on a game face and started the game, this time chucking a dollar in.

During the middle of the game when the Yeti suddenly appeared out of the forest a little while after the avalanche had started, Alexis started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" I asked, glancing over at her to see her laughing her head off.

"The yeti looks like Lex Luthor, with a beard and a hairy body," Alexis said through laughs. I examined the yeti to see that it did bear some of Lex Luthor's resemblances like his bald head and smile. "This game is so unrealistic."

I smiled before I quickly sped down the hill past Alexis. Along the way, Alexis was caught by the the Lex Luthor-looking yeti.

"Stupid karma." I heard Alexis mutter. I flashed her a smile before I said that it's probably lunch by now. "Where should we go?"

"I know a place," I said. I gestured for her to follow me and we walked all the way to my favourite pizza parlor.

"It smells so heavenly, even from out here," said Alexis as she took in a deep breath.

"This is most definitely the best pizza I've ever had!" exclaimed Alexis as she finished off her last pizza slice.

"We should come here more often," I said out loud before I could stop myself from speaking. I glanced over at Alexis to see that she was thinking. Her face quickly turned into a cheerful one and she looked over at me.

"I agree," she said.

"Come on, let's go to the park," I said.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Gotham Park<strong>

**October 3RD 3:47 p.m.**

At the park people were outside having a picnic, running, playing with their dogs or just plain walking with their friends.

"I love the park." I heard Alexis say under her breath. I'm not sure if she meant for only me to hear her but I'm pretty sure that's what came out of her mouth.

"And why's that?" I asked her. She looked over to me, embarressed that I had heard what she said. Blood started to flow into her cheeks causing them to look pinkish.

"It's the only place that I've ever felt was… closes to my mom…" she finished off silently. I stared into her eyes and noticed the sadness in them. There was also worry, hurt and scared in them. That's when I finally looked into her eyes and realized that her tough personality was just a front. She was just an average girl who's scared and afraid of plenty of things. In fact it was like she was more fragile than anyone I've ever met.

"Alexis…" I managed to say. All I wanted to do was hold her in my arms and tell her that she's safe. As long as she realizes how many people around her support her, then maybe she'll finally understand that you can't just take all of your feelings and keep them inside. I know what that's like. Alexis turned away and stared at the ground. I placed my hand on her shoulder and felt her tense up. "I'm here." Alexis stared at the ground a little while longer before turning back to face me and smiled.

"Come on, I want to show you something," said Alexis. She grabbed my hand and gently pulled me toward the park fountain. It was good thing that she didn't see me blush for what- the third time today? She stopped in front of it and stared into the water. "This is where Karie and I first made our wish. We wished to help people and make them smile. The first part came true, you know, how we got our powers and all, but I'm not so sure about the second."

"Oh come on, you guys made Artemis smile on your first day back at the Cave," I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Alexis stared at me and made a face of confusion. I sighed and told her to follow me back home. Reluctantly, she did.

We entered my special little room Bruce gave me with the picture of my parents, and walked up to the grandfather clock. I tapped it and it slid to the side, revealing the secret passage way that led to the Bat Cave. I led Alexis through and around all the strange things that Batman kept in the Bat Cave and ended up at a small door. I opened it and gestured for Alexis to go in first. When Alexis walked in I heard her gasp. I leaned against the door and watched Alexis as she stared at everything in the room. My Robin costume, my bird-a-rangs, utility belt, everything. She stopped in front of my Robin costume and looked up at it. She touched the R and stayed like that for a while.

"Your… Robin..." she spoke softly. "Now it all makes sense… The similaries between the two of you. You were the one who always put me back under my covers when I fell asleep on the balcony." Alexis put her hand to her head in a thinking position. "I remember now, I was half-concious and someone picked me up in his arms. I remember saying thank you and that person's cheeks heating up. It was you, wasn't it?" Alexis turned around and looked up at me. I nodded my head.

"So, how are you taking all of this in?" I asked. Alexis shook her head and sighed before looking up at me.

"I feel.. whelmed," she smiled. I grinned at her, happy to know that she wasn't mad that I didn't tell her.

"So, are you gonna tell Karie?" I asked.

"I'm pretty sure she heard everything we just said, so there's no need," said Alexis.

"Good point," I said. "Come on, let's go get ready for dinner."

"Wait, can I ask you something?" said Alexis.

"Just because you ask me a question, doesn't mean that I'll answer it," I said, smirking deviously.

"Fine. Can I ask you a question that you'll answer 100% truthfully?" Alexis rephrased.

"Shoot," I said.

"The first time we met, you told me that your name was Richard, but I could call you Dick. When Karie and I moved in here and I ended up in your private room you told me about your parents. And now that I get a clear look at your costume, there's something more to that R on it isn't there?" Alexis asked.

I sighed. She was right. There was something more to it. "My mom made me a costume when we were in the circus. I said that I looked loser, but my dad said that my mom put a lot of hard work into the new costumes, so I had to come out from the change room," I started to laugh as I remembered the next thing that happened. "I asked mom why my costume had to be so colourful. She said that it was because when she saw me perform, I reminded her of a little robin."

"Is that why you chose your other name to be Robin?" asked Alexis.

"Yeah. Batman asked me why and I told him that it was a family name," I said.

"That's so tragic, sad, yet so fascinating at the same time," said Alexis. My eyes went wide and I stared at her in confusion.

"Fascinating?" I exclaimed.

"Well, yeah. I mean, I know every hero or villain needs a screen name, and that there's always some type of back story to why you chose that name, but yours is the one with-with the most heart and depth that I've ever heard," explained Alexis.

"Thanks, I guess," I said awkwardly.

Alexis laughed before walking up in front of me. She smiled at me before speaking. "What I mean is that I think the story behind your hero name is really special. It's not just a name, it's a part of you."

I stared at Alexis in amazement as I tried to figure out how quickly she could piece all of that together, yet be so dense when it came to seeing some of the things that other people see. Then again, she did get heat vision so... I gave up on thinking about all of that and just smiled at her.

"Thanks," I repeated, this time, less awkwardly.

That's when we just stood there for a while just staring at each other. But something inside me just clicked and I started to lean in. Alexis started to do the same, the gap between us only less than an inch apart.

"Master Dick, Mistress Alexis, it is time for dinner," came Alfred's voice from behind the door. Alexis and I jumped back, both of our faces flushed from embarrassment.

"L-let's go," I said gesturing to the door. Alexis nodded and opened the door quickly and scurried passed Alfred. As I walked out of the room, Alfred asked me if Alexis and I were alright.

"Yeah- I mean yes Alfred, everything's just fine," I said. I quickly glanced at Alfred to see him smirking knowingly. I glared at him before making my way out of the Bat Cave.

"Kids these days," said Alfred, shaking his head while chuckling. "There up to the craziest things."

* * *

><p>Dinner was too awkward. Alexis and I were sitting beside each other and nimbling on our food little by little. We said nothing the whole time but listen to Karie talk about how her and Artemis were training back at Mt. Justice, and something about Artemis and Wally arguing or something. After dinner I went up to my room and plopped on to my bed.<p>

My mind was replaying what had happened back in the Bat Cave. Alexis and I were so close to kissing, but Alfred just had to interupt us and call us for dinner. Alexis, she actually was about to kiss me as well. That's weird because Alexis just went out with Shane yesterday and from the songbird pin cam, Alexis rejected Shane when he was about to kiss her. But back at the Bat Cave she was about to kiss me. Was it because it was an 'in the moment' type of thing or did she really want to kiss me? Does this mean that she likes me more than Shane? I decided that I'll find out the answers for all of these questions another day, since my eyes were feeling drowsy. I fell asleep dreaming about what could've happened just a few hours ago.

* * *

><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	11. Used

**Gotham City, Wayne Manor**

**October 7TH 7:13 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

I groaned as my alarm clock woke me up. I swung my arm at the alarm clock and sluggishly sat up on my bed. I rubbed my eyes and stretched. I looked at the songbird pin and blushed at what had happened yesterday.

~Flashback~

"_Thanks," Dick repeated, this time, less awkwardly._

_We stared at each other for a while before Dick started to lean in. I'm not sure what inside me made me do this, but, I started to lean in as well. Something about kissing Dick felt more right than kissing Shane, maybe it's because I trust Dick more, or the idea of kissing Dick is just more… appealing._

_All of these thoughts were running through my head as the gap between Dick and I was about to close with our lips._

"_Master Dick, Mistress Alexis, it is time for dinner," said Alfred's voice from behind the door. Dick and I quickly jerked away from each other and blushed scarlet red._

"_L-let's go," said Dick, gesturing to the door. I nodded and quickly opened the door, running past Alfred as quickly as possible and up the stairs._

_As I walked into the dining hall, Karie looked at me and raised her eyebrows. "Why are you all out of breath? And are you blushing?" I looked at Karie and blushed even more, looking down as I sat in my seat. _

"_TELL. ME. WHAT. HAPPENED," Karie grinned, her sly fox smile making me roll my eyes._

"_You probably heard, with your fox-hearing," I said._

"_Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," said Karie looking at me deviously._

"_Fine," I pouted, before sighing. "Dick and I almost kissed." I was closing my eyes the whole time. When I didn't hear a response from Karie, I opened my eyes and peaked at Karie, to see that her mouth was wide open in awe and her eyes had gone wide._

_When Karie regained her composure, she asked me a question. "But I thought, thought that you liked Shane?"_

"_My feelings are kinda mixed up right now," I said. "But the weird thing was that when Dick and I were about to kiss, it felt so, so right. But when Shane was going to kiss me, it felt, wrong. Karie, what does that mean?"_

_Karie smirked, making me feel nervous about what she was about to say._

"_It means young padawan," joked Karie, which made me narrow my eyes at her for joking at a time like this. "You like Dick more than you like Shane."_

_Karie's answer blew my mind. How can I like Dick more than Shane?_

_"__Dick's smarter, better-looking, actually knows the **real you**, trusts you as much as you trust him, and really cares about you," said my conscience._

_I didn't respond to my conscience because everything it said seemed true. Although the last part did confuse me. How did my conscience know if Dick really cares about me?_

"_Listen Dilan, we'll talk about this after dinner," said Karie._

_After dinner Karie and I sat on my bed and talked about our conversation just before dinner._

"_Look Dilan, this is good, Dick is a nice guy, give him a chance. It seems like you have much more in common with him than you do with Shane. Like your job, your pasts, age, grade, interests, the list goes on forever!" Karie said._

"_I know, but—" I started, only to be caught off by Karie._

"_I know," she said. "But you're afraid that this might affect your friendship with Dick, or you might get rejected by him," Karie finished for me. I nodded and continued to watch Karie, as I always did when I didn't know what to do. "Alexis. You'll never know if you never try."_

_I thought about what Karie told me until I finally fell asleep and realized that she was right. But I still don't want to risk our friendship, so I guess I'll just have to figure out my feelings for Shane first._

~End of Flashback~

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Gotham Academy<strong>

**October 7TH 12:09 p.m.**

"Alexis, we need to talk, _now_," said Dick seriously.

I stopped spinning in my combination for my lock and turned around to see Dick with a stern look on his face.

"Sure," I said, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Follow me," he said, gesturing for me to follow. Just as I took a step in his direction, two hands were quickly placed over my eyes. Doing the first thing I could think of doing in a situation like this, I elbowed the person and quickly ducked to the ground to sweep them. The person fell to the ground, as I heard them grunt. I stood back up, my arms in front of me ready to defend myself. The person spoke and said, "Man, can't you take a joke 'Lexi? I winced as I heard the person call me 'Lexi,' before finally looking at the person who touched me. My face turned red and I quickly helped the person up.

"Oh my goodness, Shane I'm so sorry! I thought you were some rapist or something!" I quickly exclaimed as I helped Shane up. I heard someone laugh behind us, but it was probably just one of Shane's friends。

"It's alright, Lexi," said Shane as he straighten his shirt out. "I just came to ask if you wanted to go on a double date with me?"

The question caught me off guard. A double date? "Who are the other dates?"

"My brother, and he was wondering if you could ask your sister to come along as his date?" Shane asked, a smile growing on his face for no apparent reason.

"Um sure, I'll ask my sister," I answered in a monotone voice。

"Great," smiled Shane as he winked at me. "Catch ya later, Lexi."

I watched as Shane walked into the cafeteria with the rest of his friends, confused out of my mind.

"Alexis?" came a voice. I quickly turned around and saw Dick looking at me, an annoyed look on his face.

"Sorry Dick, um what did you want to talk to me about?" I asked.

Dick sighed. "I was going to warn you about Shane. This whole double date thing is just some plan he and his 'friends' came up with."

I looked at Dick, now even more confused. "What do you mean? How can you acuse Shane for something that you don't have proof for?"

Dick looked at me and just stared, his composure faltering slightly. "I over heard him and his buddies. This double date thing is just so that Shane can get to Karie. She's the one he wants. And he's going to get to her through you. That's what he's been doing this whole time, using jerk."

I was shocked about what Dick has just told me. "You were eavesdropping?"

"That's not the point right now," said Dick. "Don't go on that double date, all he's going to do is hurt you. If you don't believe me, then I'll even try to figure out his whole plan for you."

I thought about Dick's offer. 'I'll even try to figure out his whole plan _for you_.' He's willing to do all that... for me? _"Alexis. You'll never know if you never try," _came Karie's voice.

"Okay," I whispered. Dick nodded before he turned to walk off somewhere, even though we would usually walk to lunch together. "Dick?"

Dick turned around to face me again, his serious expression changing into a softer one. "Yeah?"

I walked up to him and stood on my toes to give him a little peck on the cheek. "Thank you." I could feel Dick's body temperature rise in his cheek areas and saw that he was trying to hide his blush, making me giggle. I decided to leave him hanging and walked towards the cafeteria, leaving a bashful Dick in the hallway, which made me giggle a bit more.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Gotham Manor<strong>

**October 7TH 8:43 p.m.**

I was listening to the radio when I felt Dick's familiar body heat at the door. "Come in."

Dick came in and headed straight for my computer. Intrigued, I walked over to him and stood by him as he typed away on the computer. A window popped up and started to play a recorded video. I watched the video and listened carefully.

"Hey man, how's that freshman chick of yours, uh what's her name again?" said one of his buddies, as he chewed his lunch loudly.

"Alexis," said Shane. "Sister of that one girl who will do nothing but not pay attention to me, Karie."

"Oh, the old sister trick, am I right?" asked another friend.

"Right on my friend," smirked Shane.

"So what's your plan?" asked the first guy who spoke.

Shane smiled deviously. "I'm going to ask her on a double date. She'll probably ask who the other dates are, so I'll just say my brother, and that he wants to go with Karie. I'll ask her if she could ask Karie and she'll most definitely say yes. Then on the day of the date a freshman I hired will somehow distract Alexis on their way to the date, while Karie continues to make her way to the place of the date. My brother of course won't end up coming, so it'll just be us 2, _alone._"All of Shane's buddies burst into cheers as they thought about how smart his plan was. Everyone else around them in the cafeteria though were talking to their friends to bother about the nose they were making.

I didn't even realize that Dick had stopped the video and turned off my computer, until he called my name.

"You okay?" he asked, the worry in his voice loud and clear.

"That-that," I said trying to find the right words. "That jerk!" Now I was blazing with anger. I stormed out of my room and headed down to the gym.

I was punching the punching bag as hard as I could, letting all of my anger out.

"Dilan."

I stopped and breathed before shutting my eyes, then opening them. "You heard didn't you?"

"I always hear the both of you," said Karie. "So that I know you guys are safe and near by."

I started to bite my lip and just hugged Karie tightly, letting all the tears pour out of my eyes. Karie led me to a bench where we sat down.

"Shhh, I know. It hurts, but everything is going to be okay," Karie spoke gently, as she wrapped her arms around me and ran her hand down my back in a soothing gesture. "Come on, where's that tough little girl I know?" I smiled as I sobbed, grateful to have such a caring sister.

"Y-you know Kar-Karie," I started, my head resting on her shoulder. "You're the best s-sister in the world."

"And you're the same," said Karie, which made me smile even more.

After I finally stopped crying and sobbing, Karie asked me a question that hadn't come to mind until Karie brought it up. "So what's the plan?"

* * *

><p><strong>Sisterly moments are so fun to write. Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	12. Revenge is Sweet

**Gotham City, Gotham Academy**

**October 9TH 12:27 p.m.**

**Dick's Pov**

I was still thinking about how Alexis started to act yesterday and this morning. She was all happy and cheerful, even after I showed her that video. Somethings not right…

"Hey," I smiled, as I met Alexis at her locker.

"Hey," she smiled back. She took out a few books before shutting her locker. "Let's go."

We entered the cafeteria and started to head for the usual lunch line. After we sat down with Artemis and Karie, we ate silently, which was odd because we would usually be one of the most talkative tables.

Suddenly, both Alexis and Karie got up and walked over to Shane's table. I stared silently, curious about what was about to happen, not noticing Artemis pull out her phone and video taping them.

"Hey Karie, Lexi," said Shane as he winked at Alexis, but started to run his eyes over Karie. My face retorting into a scowl of disgust.

"Hi Shane," said Karie in a girly voice. "So Alexis told me that you wanted to go on a double date."

"Correcto," said Shane smirking at Karie.

"Well I just came here to ask if I could get your brothers number?" asked Karie.

Shane's eyes widened and twitched ever so slightly, before finding his voice. "Um, yeah sure, but why do you want his number?"

"Well I heard from a friend that he wanted to get to know me better and since I don't see him in any of my classes, I thought that maybe I should just call him," explained Karie, batting her eyes at Shane, while making an innocent face.

"Uh-um yeah sure," said Shane, finding a pen and writing down his brothers number before handing it to Karie.

"Thanks Shane, you know what I think I'm going to call him right now," said Karie.

"Um, you know what, he's kinda busy right now, he's out," Shane paused for a moment, like he was thinking of some excuse. "He's out helping my mom at the bank, you know as an accountant."

"Oh, I'm sure he won't mind," replied Karie, slyness inking into her voice. "Hey Alexis, could I borrow your phone?"

"Yeah sure, just tell me his number," said Alexis, quickly pulling out her phone. After dialing in Dale's number, Alexis held the phone out to Karie.

"You know what? I kinda have to go to the loo right now, so could you please talk to him for me?" asked Karie. Alexis made a face before agreeing, Karie quickly sprinting to the washroom.

That's when everyone in the cafeteria went silent. The only thing you could hear was Alexis' phone ringing. That was until someone else's ringtone broke the odd silence. Everyone turned their heads towards the sound and saw a guy who looked a lot like Shane pull out his phone and answer it.

"Hello?" asked Dale.

"Hi this is Alexis, the girl your brother is using to get to my older sister," said Alexis bluntly. Th guy suddenly stood up and walked all the way down to Shane's table. He glared at his brother before looking at Alexis.

"You're Alexis?" he asked, Alexis giving a small nod.

"Hey Alexis, I'm back how did it-Dale?" Karie said reappearing out of nowhere.

"You are?" he asked.

"I'm Karie, you know the girl you wanted to go out with for the double date with your brother and my little sister?" answered Karie, faking a confused face.

That's when I finally realized what was going on. Alexis and Karie hatched a plan to get Shane back. And it was most definitely an ironic one. Using a sibling to get to the other. In Shane's case it was Alexis, but in Alexis and Karie's case, it's Dale. I started to laugh at the idea of how Shane's brother was going to get revenge on him.

Dale glared at Shane again, giving him a more deadly look, Dale's face completely red. "Listen, there's been a misunderstanding. I never said any of that stuff, my brother made it all up." He turned to face Alexis before speaking. "I'm sorry about this whole mess my little brother made, if I were you," he said looking at both Karie and Alexis. "I would never go out or talk to this jerk over here again." Alexis and Karie smiled and forgave Dale before returning to our seats, Dale's shouting in the background.

I smiled at Alexis before saying jokingly, "Oh the irony." Alexis laughing, at my obvious sarcasm.

"So how come you didn't tell me about this plan?" I asked Alexis, as we walked home together; Karie went to the mall with Artemis.

Alexis looked up from her shoes and at the bluish-grey sky. "Karie came up with most of it, the only part that I had part in was the idea of Artemis video taping the whole thing."

"That still doesn't explain why you didn't tell me," I told Alexis, stopping. A smirk growing on my face at how cute she looked when I made her look bashful.

"I guess… I just wanted to see the look on your face at the end of it all," answered Alexis, walking on ahead of me, leaving me confused by her answer.

* * *

><p><strong>Alexis' Pov<strong>

I couldn't wait for today. The plan Karie came up with was perfect. Well as long as everything goes well. I hope Dick won't be upset afterwards or anything. In fact a part of me wished that Dick would hack his phone so that when he turned it on, it would explode in his face or something. Then I would smile at him and thank him for doing all that just for me… _Yeah right, like that's ever going to happen, _I thought. I shook my head giggling at how unrealistically romantic I thought the idea was.

"Hey."

"Hey," I said, smiling at Dick. I grabbed my history and math books and closing my locker, before saying to Dick, "Let's go."

We walked into the cafeteria and headed for the usual lunch line, before sitting down in our usual seats at our table with Artemis and Karie. I eyed Karie and Artemis, silently signaling to them that it was time for the plan to start. Both Karie and I got up, and headed over to Shane, as I heard Artemis open her bag and pull out her phone.

"Hey Karie, Lexi," said Shane as he winked at me, but started to run his eyes over Karie. _What a jerk and a pervert_, I thought, rolling my eyes all the while.

"Hi Shane," said Karie in a girly voice. "So Alexis told me that you wanted to go on a double date."

"Correcto," said Shane smirking at Karie. I stood by in between the both of them watching them carefully, anger filling me the more I saw Shane trying to flirt with my sister. _What did I ever see in this jerk?_

"Well I just came here to ask if I could get your brother's number?" asked Karie.

Shane's eyes widened and twitched ever so slightly, before finding his voice. _This should be eventful_, I thought my frown twitching into a slight grin. "Um, yeah sure, but why do you want his number?"

"Well I heard from a friend that he wanted to get to know me better, and since I don't see him in any of my classes, I thought that maybe I should just call him," explained Karie, batting her eyes at Shane, while making an innocent face. I wanted to ruin the moment and laugh right then and there, Karie batting her eyes? This was the best acting that I've ever seen, hands down.

"Uh-um yeah sure," said Shane, finding a pen and writing down his brothers number on a napkin, before handing it to Karie.

"Thanks Shane, you know what I think I'm going to call him right now," said Karie.

"Um, you know what, he's kinda busy right now, he's out," Shane paused for a moment, like he was thinking of some excuse. "He's out helping my mom at the bank, you know as an accountant."

"Oh, I'm sure he won't mind," replied Karie, slyness inking into her voice. "Hey Alexis, could I borrow your phone?"

"Yeah sure, just tell me his number," I said, quickly pulling out my phone. After dialing in Dale's number, I held the phone out to Karie.

"You know what? I kinda have to go to the loo right now so, could you please talk to him for me?" asked Karie. I faked an annoyed face before agreeing, Karie quickly sprinting to the washroom.

That's when everyone in the cafeteria went silent. The only thing you could hear was my phone ringing, after deciding to put it on speaker. That was until someone else's ringtone broke the odd silence. Everyone turned their heads towards the sound and saw a guy who looked a lot like Shane pull out his phone and answer it.

"Hello?" asked Dale.

"Hi this is Alexis, the girl your brother is using to get to my older sister," I said bluntly, smiling in satisfaction as I could see Shane's face paling out of the corner of my eye. The guy suddenly stood up and walked all the way down to Shane's table. He glared at his brother before facing me.

"You're Alexis?" he asked. I gave small nod, trying to act as innocent as possible.

"Hey Alexis, I'm back how did it-Dale?" Karie said reappearing out of nowhere.

"You are?" he asked.

"I'm Karie, you know the girl you wanted to go out with for the double date with your brother and my little sister?" answered Karie, faking a confused face.

Dale glared at Shane again, giving him a more deadly look, Dale's face completely red. "Listen, there's been a misunderstanding. I never said any of that stuff, my brother made it all up." He turned to face Alexis before speaking. "I'm sorry about this whole mess my little brother made, if I were you," he said looking at both Karie and me. "I would never go out or talk to this jerk over here ever again." Karie and I smiled and forgave Dale before returning to our seats, Dale's shouting in the background.

I sat down and looked at Dick to see him smiling, a very amused look on his face. Relief washed over me, drowning the thought of Dick getting mad at me for not making him a part of the plan, even though a part of me wished that he was. You know, so I knew that he cared.

"Oh the irony," said Dick jokingly, breaking me from my thoughts, a laugh escaping me.

I was walking home with Dick, (Karie went to the mall with Artemis) when Dick suddenly asked me, "So how come you didn't tell me about this plan?"

I looked up from my shoes and at the bluish-grey sky. _Kinda like the colour of your eyes… _I thought. His eyes bright and fascinating, while mischievous, making you want to know more about him, only to find out that he's a kind-hearted, funny, acrobat, computer genius, who takes away the prefixes in english words and uses the rest to describe how he feels.

"Karie came up with most of it, the only part that I had part in was the idea of Artemis video taping the whole thing," I told him.

"That still doesn't explain why you didn't tell me," Dick told me, stopping. I blushed in embarrassment as I realized that what I just said had nothing to do with what he asked me. I could see a smirk growing on my face, as he waited for my answer.

"I guess… I just wanted to see the look on your face at the end of it all," I answered, walking on ahead of Dick. I needed some time to think. Now that Shane's gone forever hopefully, does this mean that maybe Dick and I could—? No, that would be crazy, me and Dick? _Maybe I should just forget about these feelings I have for Dick, I mean what are the odds?_

* * *

><p><strong>So this will be the last chapter until I finally find time to write and update on my summer vacation. Sigh*<strong>

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	13. Emotions

**So sorry for not updating in such a long time! I was on vacation and didn't have any time to write.**

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**October 10TH 4:58 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

Karie and I were waiting patiently for Black Canary. The reason, we need to work on using our powers. Besides, I've thought for the past few weeks why we never got to train with any of our said teachers, but I couldn't ask anyone because Batman never had some spare time. I was blowing hair out of my face impatiently, when I decided that I should just pin it up. I took out the songbird pin from Dick and quickly put it on. The sound of heels against the floor filled the empty room Karie and I were standing in and Black Canary walked into the room.

"Sorry to keep the two of you waiting, Zatara's daughter Zatanna came and the rest of the team took her sight-seeing around Happy Harbor," explained Black Canary. "Now back to the issue at hand. I heard from Batman that the both of you have dangerous powers that the two of use will most likely use do to your emotions. We just need to figure out how you can control your emotions if you were to use your powers in an irrational situation and maybe how we can enhance them."

"Sounds good," smiled Karie.

I nodded agreeing with Karie, my mind already starting to replay the scene when I used my powers to cause my dad to faint.

"Well the emotions that would most likely trigger our powers would be anger, sadness, distress, revenge and… Well you get what I mean," said Karie.

"Alright then, think of something that makes you just want to scream at me to do something, Alexis," said Black Canary.

"What but I can't just tell you to do something I mean isn't that kinda," I froze as I saw Black Canary starting to run up at me, her arms already positioned to swing at me. _So that's how she wants it to be huh?_ I tried to think of something that angered me deeply. I closed my eyes, I could feel my powers flowing through, first through my hair then to my eyes. The memory that came into mind was one that I'd rather forget, but it would forever be engraved into my mind.

_I was cowering on the staircase as I watched Karie trying to calm our father down like she usually did. It had only been not even a month after moms accident and dad was already starting to become distant._

"_Dad, stop drinking! How do you think mom will react when she sees you drinking over 7 bottles of beer per 4 hours?" screamed Karie. I shivered as Karie mentioned mom. Karie knew what to expect when she brought up mom in front of dad. I could still hear the shattering sound of glass and Karie's screams of pain._

_Ever since mom went into a coma, Karie filled in her place and took on the motherly role. She became cold and always had a straight face with an icy glare. She would always look out for me. After that I haven't seen the same Karie I once knew before the incident. The Karie who was care-free, always smiling and, happy. I just wish that everything would just wish that the truck never ended up crashing into the one and only hardware store._

_I felt as if I needed to breathe and relax. 'Stop." I told myself._

"_Ahh!" cried Karie._

"_Stop."_

"_Don't bring up your mother!" shouted my dad._

"_Stop!"_

_I could hear the truck racing towards the hardware store._

"Stop!" I shrieked. I realized that I had actually said that out loud. I opened my eyes to see Canary's fist only a few inches from reaching my eye. From the corner of my eye I could see Karie's terrified look and the surprise in Black Canary's eye.

"Well done," said Canary, slightly struggling to pull her arm back, before turning her wrist around to get the feeling back.

"Sorry," I mumbled quietly.

"Now Karie, your powers…" I dozed off into space and stood on the sidelines as Black Canary started to explain to Karie how she can use her powers and what-not.

I sighed mentally. The reaction on Dick's face… He only sees and cares for me as a friend. Nothing else and nothing more. That's when I laughed to myself quietly. What was I ever thinking? All of those times I thought that maybe-maybe there was a chance, I guess I was just fooling myself. Letting someone open up to me…and wanting to just be as care-free around them as much as possible. What a joke. After the life I've had, it feels like I'm living a dream.

"Alexis," came a firm and serious voice. I quickly snapped my head in the direction of the voice, to find Black Canary looking at me with a concerned look.

"S-sorry, just got a little spaced out," I stuttered.

Black Canary studied me for a moment before continuing. "Now that you both know how to use your abilities, we have to figure out a way for you to control yourself if you were ever to use them on impulse."

"So we need some type of counter thought," said Karie.

"Exactly," agreed Black Canary. "I'm sure you'll be able to come up with those on your own, so you're both dismissed."

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**October 10TH 6:35 p.m.**

I headed up to my room for a shower, but just before I opened the door to my room Karie called my name.

"Yeah?" Karie motioned for me to come closer to her. I walked towards her curiously. She then moved her head so that it was a few inches away from mine.

"If you're still into Dick, I wouldn't after hearing him flirt away with Zatara's daughter, Zatanna," Karie whispered. My eyes grew wide in surprise. "And it seems that she has her eyes on him too, laughing and flirting back." Karie shook her head before entering her room, leaving me alone in the hallway.

_He was flirting with the someone he's never met before? Isn't that something usually Wally would do? Well at least now I have more of a reason to disregard my feelings for Dick._ I groaned in frustration and decided to just take a shower and go to bed, knowing fully well that everyone would be confused by my odd actions. I bet that Dick would be the one to check on me too. I rolled my eyes at the thought. After what happened yesterday and hearing what Karie knew, I was in no mood to happy.

Just as I had expected, a couple of hours later I heard a knock on the door followed by Dick's voice calling my name. I heard the door creak open and his soft footsteps towards me.

"Alexis?" I cuddled into my blanket and bed more, acting as though I were actually asleep. I felt Dick just standing there, before I heard him laugh. "You are so bad at trying to fake sleeping."

Not wanting him to think that I was fake sleeping I slowly opened my eyes, before fluttering them in an innocent manner and sitting up in my bed.

"Dick?" I said, rubbing an eye as if I still couldn't see. "What are you doing in my room? I thought you were still back at the cave?" I looked at Dick, a fake confused faced looking right at him for answers. Dick seemed to tense for a moment before he turned his head his left, as if trying to hide a blush.

"Oh, ah, I was just going to let you know that Alfred saved you some dinner, it's in the fridge if you're hungry," said Dick.

"Thanks but I'm not hungry, besides I think that I'm going to go back to sleep," I replied adding a yawn at the end and making my eyes seem drowsy.

"Right, um good night," said Dick. I smiled at him before he quickly walked out of my room, shutting the door behind him.

"Now that I'm awake I can't fall asleep for a while," I whispered, before sighing. I got out of bed and head down stairs, only to find myself back in Dick's special room. The fireplace was still burning brightly, the warmth emitting from it comforting. My eyes became heavy, but from all that's happened today I fell right asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**October 10TH 10:35 p.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

When we got back to the cave everyone was to go home, leaving Zatanna and her dad some time alone to talk about her kidnapping today. I smiled to myself. _Zatanna…_

"Hey, Robin," called KF.

"What's up?" I asked.

"What was with you today? You were acting totally different," said KF.

"What do you mean by different?" I asked, my eyebrows raising.

"I mean you were acting totally like me today!" KF exclaimed, before sighing. "I thought you were into Alexis anyway?"

I froze at KF's question. Memories of Alexis started flashing through my mind, the last one being the one that made my mind think the most.

"_I guess that I just wanted to see the look on your face at the end of it all…"_

What did she mean by that? "I have a feeling that she doesn't think of me in that way, so why not just move on?"

KF made a thinking face before running his hand through his hair. He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me aside, a good distance away from everyone.

"What happened?" Wally asked in a deadly serious tone.

"Look KF—"

"This is a conversation between my best friend Dick and me, Wally," Wally interrupted. "And best friends tell each other everything so that they can help each other."

I sighed. When Wally got serious, he was serious, none of my tricks will get me out of this. I started to tell Wally about how Alexis and I almost kissed, when Wally started to smirk at me. "What?"

He smirked at me smugly before speaking, "You really do like Alexis."

I ignored his comment and continued with my story. To how there was some jerk Alexis liked that wanted to get to her sister and then to our awkward conversation on the way home.

"She said that she just wanted to see the look on my face at the end of it all," I told him, repeating Alexis' words.

Wally seemed to think about her words before a seemed to figure what they meant. "Dude, she wanted to see if you saw her as a friend or as more than _just_ a friend."

I looked at Wally skeptically. "And how would you know?" I asked crossing my arms.

"Dick, I know girls," said Wally. "How did you react after the plan?"

"Well I laughed and said 'Oh the irony'," I recalled.

Wally face-palmed himself, before shaking his head in a shameful way. "You should have asked her why she didn't make you part of the plan. Then she would have known that you cared."

"I did," I argued. "Just not then."

"We have to somehow get her to think that you do really care for her in that way again," said Wally, already trying to scheme up a plan.

"We?"

"Yeah, I mean with my knowledge of girls and since this is for a girl that you like, nothing could go wrong," smiled Wally.

"You know what, it was great that I could talk to someone about this, but I think I'll come up with a plan on my own," I said.

"Yeah, I thought you would've said that," said Wally. "Just know that I'm always here for you."

"Thanks," I said, flashing a smile at Wally before walking towards the zeta-tube.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the boring chapter, but I'm around halfway done writing the next chapter and now that I have a whole month of summer vacation left, I'll try to update as often as I can. <strong>

**Review, alert or fav!**


	14. Mission: FAILED

**Just to let you know:**

_Italics is the team talking to each other through Miss Martians link._

And this is just regular talking.

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><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**October 16TH 4:01 p.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

I couldn't believe what I just saw. Both Green Lanterns, Superman, Martian Manhunter, Captain Marvel, Atom, and Batman, have just been disintegrated by these unknown extra terrestrial enemies.

Another holographic screen appeared, Zatara the one who happened to be sending us a message. "Tornado, did you?"

"Yes, Zatara, we saw," said Red Tornado. "Celestial defences have failed. Initiating all terrestrial measures."

"Affirmative. See you in the field," said Zatara, ending the conversation.

"I must join The League. We will protect the planet at all costs. but should we fail, the responsibility shall fall to you," said Tornado.

"We stand ready," spoke Kaldur, a braveness in his voice.

"Red Tornado to Cave, I fear I am all that's left of The League," said Red Tornado, before we saw him be shot at by one of the canons.

"R.T," said Robin. We all stood silent after witnessing the entire Justice League fall.

"We are Earth's heroes now," said Aqualad.

"Right," said Karie.

"So what are we waiting for, a theme song?" asked Superboy, anger and impatience in his voice.

"A strategy. Earth's weapons have been ineffective. And it has been made tragically clear that a direct attack will not succeed," said Aqualad, looking at all of us before Robin.

"Checking satellite imagery," said Robin, quickly typing away on his glove. A 3D globe appeared. "Here's where the aliens are now."

"This would get lost?" asked Superboy.

"It's Superman's Fortress of Solitude," exclaimed Robin. "It's power force must've attracted the aliens attention. At least enough to send a scout ship to investigate."

"If they only send a scout ship to a place with a power force like that..." I trailed off, before my eyes also became wide.

"It must be some fortress," muttered Superboy.

"We will target this lone ship," said Aqualad.

* * *

><p>Miss Martian quickly disabled the scout ships communication and repulsion. Artemis then shooting an arrow at it. Aqualad jumped out of the ice below the ship and on to it. Right as he landed the laser aimed and fired at him. Wolf was fast enough to jump and push the laser away from Aqualad, before it fired. Robin and Kid Flash quickly got on top of the ship, Superboy holding the laser steady. Kistune and I were trying to sense if anything was still inside the ship.<p>

_"Identifying weapon structural stress points and linked to the ship,"_ said Robin. He got up from his crouch and indicated the important parts of the laser with his hand. _"Here, here and here."_

Miss Martian quickly used her powers to cut them into 3. Superboy pulled it out, wires and other E.T technology connected to them. One of them falling right behind Superboy's leg, the unmistakable surge of electricity running through it.

_"Superboy, watch out!" _I exclaimed. Wolf suddenly ran past me, hearing the electricity in the disc as well. He jumped between Superboy and the laser, pushing Superboy off the ship in the process, just as the laser was being fired. The next thing I knew Wolf was gone. Everyone stared at the place where Wolf had just disappeared, all to shocked to speak.

_"Wolf,"_ said Miss Martian telepathically.

_"I can't do anything for him now,"_ thought Superboy, walking back on to the ship. _"Let's go." _Superboy grabbed back on to the laser and continued to pull it out. He quickly walked over to the bio-ship where Miss Martian started to connect the laser to the ship.

_"I'll have to de-camouflage for a few minutes," _said Miss Martian.

_"May not have a few minutes,"_ said Robin. Two other enemy ships were flying towards us.

_"Miss Martian, open fire!"_ ordered Aqualad.

_"Can't, weapon systems are offline to incorporate the new canon, and that's not fully integrated yet either," _said Miss Martian.

_"Then we might want to hurry it up,"_ Kitsune said, the enemy ships getting closer to us.

_"Gotcha covered! Get inside, I'm almost there!"_ yelled Artemis, firing a few trick arrows at the ships. Both of the ships fell, one of them exploding, the other sliding towards us. I felt the same electric current run through the laser, the laser aiming at Artemis.

_"Artemis, run!"_ Kitsune and I screamed.

_"Artemis, behind you!"_ said Miss Martian.

Artemis quickly turned around about to fire the arrow that she already had notched in her bow, but the laser shot just before she did. In a matter of seconds, Artemis was gone.

"Artemis!" screamed Miss Martian out loud.

"Artemis!" Kid Flash screamed.

"No!" screamed Kitsune.

"Get inside, all of you," Aqualad ordered, before jumping off of the bio-ship and running towards the enemies, quickly bringing the ship down.

"They're dead, every single alien, if it's the last thing I do," Kid Flash said through gritted teeth.

We were all in the bio-ship. A silence of grief and sadness in the air. Kitsune was in shock, looking down at the ground. Miss Martian was crying, and Kid Flash... He was all out angry and frustrated.

"There will be time to mourn later," said Aqualad before standing up from his seat. "Now we have a job to do. Defend the Earth, and make sure Artemis' sacrifice was not in vain."

"Back to the Cave?" asked Miss Martian.

"The Hall of Justice," answered Aqualad.

"Why the Hall of Justice?" I asked Aqualad.

"The human race must know that there are still heroes defending them," said Aqualad. "There is still hope."

* * *

><p>"General Wade Ealing, Air Force," saluted the General.<p>

"Aqualad, Justice League," said hero introduced. "We'll help you salvage as many of the canons as possible. Then we start taking back what is ours."

We all walked into the Hall of Justice. Everything was in ruins. Debris was everywhere. the only thing that was still the same were the statues of the Justice League, well most of them.

"They're really gone..." said Robin, looking down.

_"Batman..."_ I said, holding my arms tightly. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I followed the person's arm, to see Robin smiling at me. I smiled back at Robin, when I heard crying. I turned to see M'gann crying beside the head of her uncle's statue. Suddenly, Miss Martian flew up into the air and removed the statue's head. Under it was Martian Manhunter.

"Uncle J'ohn," Miss Martian exclaimed. She threw the piece of rock aside and started to fly over to her uncle, when Aqualad ran in her way.

_"M'gann, check his mind,"_ said Aqualad through the link. _"Make sure he is who he appears to be."_

_"It's him, he's real, and he's alive!" _said miss Martian happily.

As Martian Manhunter slowly got up Superboy started to speak.

"But we saw you get disintegrated. You and Superman. And everyone," said Superboy.

"Yes, I remember, but I cannot remember how I survived," explained Martian Manhunter, as Miss Martian helped him up. "Or, how I arrived here."

"Maybe you were density shifting and the beam passed right through you," suggested Miss Martian.

"Scrambling your brains along the way," added Robin.

Kitsune face-palmed, while shaking her head.

"That doesn't make any sense," I said, looking at Robin.

"My mind is clouded," said Martian Manhunter, placing one of his hands on his head. Robin glanced over at me and smirked, making me roll my eyes. "I feel certain that I had something important to tell you."

"Something about this doesn't seem right," I said.

_"Hello, Wally! Come on!" _Kid Flash said, hitting his head as he realized something. Robin shooting him a confused glance.

Robin was scanning the canon attached to the bio-ship when Kid Flash started to smile.

_"I knew it! This thing is giving off zeta-beams!"_ exclaimed Kid Flash. _"The same stuff that powers our zeta-tube."_

_"So that's what those are called..."_ I mumbled to myself.

_"This thing doesn't disintegrated, it teleports!" _said Kid Flash getting all pumped about it. _"Artemis is alive!"_

"That must have been what you wanted to tell us," said Miss Martian looking at her uncle.

"But how did he escape then and end up under-" I started, when I froze. The same surge of electricity from the enemy ships growing stronger and stronger. Soon enough, we could all hear them.

_"We're on our way," _Aqualad said.

_"Negative, we can't win this! There's too many of them. Miss Martian, cam the bio-ship and-"_

Right after Robin spoke of the bio-ship it was gone as fast as he had said to camouflage it.

_"We're falling back!" _shouted Robin as he, Kid Flash, a soldier and I quickly ran into the Hall of Justice.

"We're trapped," said the General. Suddenly the sound of a door opening was heard.

"Maybe not," said Aqualad. "We can all zeta to the cave, if you can grant us computer access to the tubes."

"I can only authorize one at a time," said Martian Manhunter. "Over ride, Martian Manhunter, 07."

"Recognized, access granted," said the automated voice, as the zeta tube doors opened.

"Miss Martian, B05."

"Robin, B01."

"Kid Flash, B03."

There was a sudden explosion from the other door. Everyone quickly ran to help and defend the soldiers, Aqualad quickly tossing Kid Flash through the zeta tube.

"He goes next," said Superboy, as he carried a soldier to the zeta tube.

"Fine then you," said Aqualad. "Valkyrie, Kitsune you two are after Superboy."

"Got it!" we shouted. I was trying to help shoot at the enemies, knowing that my sword was of no use. Kitsune on the other hand had a more direct approach. She was on top of one of the canons trying to break it down with her sai's.

"Private, Jason Barn, U.S.M.C. A04."

"Superboy, B04."

"Valkyrie, Kitsune now!" screamed Aqualad.

I quickly ran up to the zeta tube, being the closest one of us to it. "Valkyrie, B08."

"Kitsune!" I heard Aqualad scream. I quickly turned around to see Kitsune get disintegrated.

"No!" I screamed, my legs unwilling to move. I felt Aqualad pick me up and throw me through the zeta-tube. "Karie!"

* * *

><p>"Our next mission is clear. We believe that the aliens are teleporting their victims," said Robin. "And the only reasonable detention facility is here." Robin typed something on his glove, a holographic globe appearing before us. "Their mother ship, on top of what use to be a small one. Ring any bells?"<p>

"No," replied Martian Manhunter. "I'm sorry."

"Superboy, you'll create a distraction," Robin said.

"No! He's offering you as a sacrifice. Aqualad would never do that!" argued Miss Martian her voice cracking.

"You're right. Aqualad would sacrifice himself, a mistake that just cost us our leader," said Robin, his voice deadly low.

"It's all my fault..." I whispered. "If only I had stopped him, if I had sacrificed myself instead." I felt everyone's eyes on me, which made me feel even more guilty.

"Superboy is the most likely to be perceived as a threat, motivating the aliens to deploy," Robin said.

"Worst case, he's teleported inside," Kid Flash said. "And we set him free along with Artemis and Kitsune and Aqualad and everyone."

"I'm going to help distract the enemy as well," I said, my voice firm and louder than it was earlier.

"Alexis, we can't risk-"

"We're all risking our lives right now, Robin," I stated, staring at him, my expression completely serious. "This way everyone has someone to rely on."

"Alexis, you are not the biggest threat to the enemy, therefore you shouldn't be in the distraction team!" argued Robin.

"Robin, this isn't about being the biggest threat! It's about pride," I said, my eyes softening, realizing how protective and worried he was now. "The pride to fight for a life or to fight for your pride. They took my friends, but they crossed the line when they took my sister."

Robin stared at me hesitantly, before giving me a small, but firm nod. A while after discussing the plan, Robin had been able to hack into the satellite systems, so that we could broadcast messages to the remaining civilians.

"And though we know all seems lost, the one thing the aliens cannot destroy is hope," said Miss Martian.

"Hope survives because the battle is not over," said Superboy. "Not as long as even one of us is willing to fight."

"Even if it seems as if there is no hope at all, there is always the will to continue. The will to live, the will to fight, the will to defend and the will to conquer!" I said.

"It doesn't matter how many fall, for new heroes will always rise to carry on," said Kid Flash. "Bringing all their resources, their skill, their talent to bear, to defeat the enemy."

"The people of Earth will survive this, and we will rebuild and we will thrive. Never doubt and never forget, the Earth, will never surrender!" said Robin.

"First team, deploy!" ordered Robin. Miss Martian and Martian Manhunter flew off into place.

_"Ready, in position,"_ Miss Martian informed.

Superboy looked at Robin, Robin nodded. Superboy jumped off towards the enemies. Taking this as my que, I was about to run behind Superboy, when something grabbed my wrist.

"Robin..." I spoke gently.

"Be careful," he said.

I nodded, not looking at him and started to run, just as his hand let go of me. I felt tears streaming down my face and I quickly wiped them off.

* * *

><p><strong>Robin's Pov<strong>

As I watched Alexis run towards the enemy, I couldn't help but feel as though I might never see her again.

Superboy and Valkyrie got their job done and were able to get the enemy to send out reinforcements. KF and I were suppose to jump into the opening of the hanger and then head to the core with MIss Martian and Manhunter. I heard something from behind us, but once I turned around, the canon fell. Miss Martian and Martian Manhunter de-camouflaged for a few seconds, before we all moved towards the core of the ship.

_"No, he's gone," _said Miss Martian, falling to her knees.

_"It's alright, we'll find him with Artemis, I know it," _KF assured her.

_"No, my mind is clearer now. The disintegration beam is exactly that, there is no detention facility, no prisoners to rescue, our mission holds no purpose," _said Martian Manhunter.

_"No, you're wrong! The zeta radiation proves she's alive!" _argued KF. I put my hand on his shoulder. _"She's-"_

_"Stop it KF!" I shouted turning him so that he was facing me. "I've been scanning for league and team signals since we got inside, they're not here. Artemis is gone," _I told him sadly. _"But our mission still holds purpose. To destroy this mothership. Miss M, contact Valkyrie and tell her to get inside and to find us."_

_"On it," _Miss M said. _"She's on her way.__"_

_"This is the mother core, blow this and the whole ship blows," _I said. I quickly jumped on a platform close to the core, when I felt a gravity from it trying to pull me closer to it. As I fell on to the platform, I saw KF jump and grab my hand. We were both sent flying to the core. I quickly pulled out my grappling gun and aimed at one of the many platforms suspending in the room. From above I could see a droid about to fire at us, when Miss M and Martian Manhunter knocked it out. Miss M release my grappling hook and set Kid Flash and I safely on to the core. I quickly unstrapped the two utility belts I had on me and placed them on the core. I finished setting a timer of when the bombs would go off. _"4 minutes, let's go."_

_"Perfect," _KF said after seeing the door close.

The footsteps of metal against metal was heard and 3 other droids appeared. They shot at KF and I but we quickly got out of their sight.

_"16 seconds in counting, Manhunter, taking Miss Martian and go," _I ordered.

_"No, we won't leave you," _said Miss M.

_"That's an order!" _I said. _"We'll follow as soon as we blow those doors."_

_"Robin," _said KF. I turned around to see Valkyrie fighting off the droids, a large cut running across her arm.

_"Valkyrie!" I shouted._

_"Manhunter, take everyone and go!" Valkyrie yelled. "GO!"_

KF and I looked at Miss M and Manhunter, they nodded and disappeared. I looked at the timer to see that there was only less than 10 seconds until this whole place comes down. I looked at KF. We exchanged a silent message and headed for the droids.

"What you guys doing?" shouted Valkyrie as she sliced off a droids leg.

"What does it look like we're doing? We're fighting 'til the end, right Rob?" asked KF quickly zigzagging across the room.

"Right KF," I agreed. I quickly threw some discs at the droids, waiting for them to go off. The droid didn't seem to care and still aimed its canon at me. I quickly threw down some gas pellets, so that I would have some cover. I ended up beside Valkyrie, blood running down her arm. She smiled at me before the timer went off.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**October 16TH 4:21 p.m.**

I woke up, breathing heavily, sweat running down my face. I sat up and looked around the room. Everyone one was there, and we were all alive. I looked over to my right to see Alexis, she was still lying down, her eyes closed. She suddenly snapped her eyes open and looked around. When she looked at me, her eyes were full of panic.

"You're all alive!" exclaimed M'gann, right before Alexis collapsed back on to the stone table.

"Alexis!" I exclaimed. Batman walked over to Alexis and put his cape over her. He sighed before he asked Martian Manhunter, "What happened in there?"

"The exercise, it all went wrong," said Martian Manhunter.

"Exercise?" I asked.

"Try to remember," Batman said. "What you experienced was a training exercise. Manhunter linked the eight of you within an artificial reality. You all knew this going in, what you didn't know was that it was a train for failure exercise. No matter what the team accomplished, the scenario was designed to grow worse. Still you were aware, nothing was real. Including the deaths of the entire Justice League."

"Uh, I'm, I'm so sorry," M'gann apologized.

"This isn't her fault!" Connor suddenly exclaimed. "Why didn't you stop the exercise?"

"We tried," Martian Manhunter said. Martian Manhunter started to explain to us how M'gann's conscious was overpowered by her subconscious. As Martian Manhunter turned to leave he stumbled, Batman and RT catching him.

We were all still in shock and all, especially M'gann who was crying now. I leaned against the stone table, sweat continuing to run down my face. I glanced over at Alexis to see that she was still lying on the table, Batman's cape draped over her. A flashback of my last memory of the exercise replaying in my head.

* * *

><p><strong>Martian Manhunter's Pov<strong>

"As bad as all that?" Batman asked.

"Perhaps worse," I said.

"Yet this is not what troubles you," said Red Tornado.

"Make no mistake. My niece is untrained and can not be held responsible for this-for our debacle," I said.

"No one blames her, but clearly, we underestimated her abilities," Batman said.

"You understated," I said. "In terms of raw power, she has the greatest telepathic mind I have ever encountered. Stronger by far, than mine. What I realise now that I am fully conscious, is that I remember Alexis being the only one who was calm and thought that something was not right about my appearance. She was fighting against M'gann's subconscious." I glanced at Batman and Red Tornado to see that they were both confused. "Alexis has a telepathic mind as well."

"It must be because of her mother being a telepathic. Does Karie have one as well?" Batman asked.

"Yes, but hers was overpowered by M'gann's," I answered. "Although Alexis seems to have the weakest one, in terms of endurance. With practice, all 3 of them could have stronger telepathic minds greater than mine."

Batman nodded before walking into the zeta tube.

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	15. Closure

**Happy Harbor, Mount Justice**

**October 23RD 5:21 p.m.**

**Black Canary's Pov**

I sighed. Connor had just stormed out of the room after I tried to make him talk about his feelings. Maybe I shouldn't have said that he's not suppose to have feelings of sadness. I groaned. I got up and walked over to the living room. I looked around to see that everyone still had the same expression on their faces. Fear.

"Karie," I called gently. She snapped out of her trance and quickly jumped off of the couch. I turned around and led her to the room that Superboy just stormed out of.

Once we were seated, I ran my eyes over Karie. She was scared, just like everyone else was. I could just make out bags under her eyes, and she looked a bit pale.

"Karie, I understand how you feel," I spoke.

"You might be able to understand, but you will never know what it's like to actually feel it," Karie said. "I left my sister all alone."

My eyes softened. "Karie, you know that your sister would never blame you for something like that."

"Of course I do, who knows her better than I do?" Karie scoffed, before her eyes became even more sad than they were already. "But it's a burden that just doubled on my shoulders."

"If you know your sister would never blame you for it, then why not just lighten the load?" I asked, my eyes narrowing in confusion.

"Because I'm her big sister," Karie answered quietly. "The one who's going to be there for her, and the one to look up to."

"I understand now," I said. "With a past like yours, you worry about the only family you have left. Problem is, you have to learn to let go."

"Let go?!" Karie exclaimed.

"Karie, calm down. What I'm trying to say is prepare yourself for the worst. If you don't, your biggest burden might really be not spending enough time with her," I advised. Karie looked up at me, eyes brimming with confusion. I smiled before continuing. "What I'm trying to say is that protecting her make her feel small. Once your gone, she'll always feel small. Spend more time with her and watch her grow. So when your really gone, she'll be able to look after herself, that way your burden won't feel so heavy. Besides, once your gone wouldn't you want her last few memories with you to be you spending time with her?"

Karie nodded. "Thank you."

I smiled.

* * *

><p>"I felt so lost," Alexis said.<p>

I watched her. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. I sighed. "Losing Batman, then your friends and lastly your sister. It must have been a lot to take in."

"In 20 minutes I lost everyone I cared about," Alexis whispered. She looked as though she were about to say something else but no words came out of her mouth.

"And?" I asked, trying to get her to talk.

"And that could happen again," Alexis spoke quietly. "Except I'm afraid it won't be a training exercise."

"Are you going to be ready when that time comes?" I asked her. She started to trace her thumb with her other one. She breathed before answering me in a more firm and confident voice.

"I'll make it through." I nodded at her answer.

"Do you still want to continue?" I asked, my eyes watching her carefully, hoping that she got the right meaning behind me question.

"I," Alexis started. She looked down at her hands. "I'm not sure."

"Black Canary, inform Alexis to meet me by the doors," Batman ordered through the Com link.

"Alright," I answered. Alexis was looking at me confusingly. "Sounds like Batman has a surprise for you."

"What?" Alexis asked, raising an eyebrow. I laughed lightly. "Meet him by the doors."

* * *

><p><strong>Batman's Pov<strong>

Karie and I were waiting patiently for Alexis by the doors, my Bat Mobile parked in front of them. I got a message from the Gotham Prison saying that Drew Henderson would like to speak to his daughters. Even though they were both still recovering from the traumatic events of the exercise, I thought that it would be best to get their minds off of it by taking them to speak with their father.

"Alexis," I said.

"Hi," she said.

"Follow me," I ordered. "Red Tornado." The doors opened revealing the beach side of the mountain. I opened the Bat Mobile door and told the two of them to get in. The followed quickly. I jumped into the driver's seat and started the Bat Mobile. Once we were on the road, there was a silence that lingered in the air.

"I'm taking you to go talk to your father," I stated. I could feel their eyes widen, staring at me.

"What?" Karie asked.

"You mean in prison?" Alexis asked.

"Your father asked to speak with you two, so know I'm taking you to go meet him," I explained.

"Did he say what he wanted to talk about?" Karie asked.

"No."

When we arrived at the prison I escorted the two inside, stopping to ask a guard to get Drew Henderson into a private room. We waited until the same guard showed us the way to the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Gotham Prison<strong>

**October 23RD 6:04 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

When we walked into the room I tensed. There he was just sitting there, elbows propped up on the table, metal cuffs around his wrists. Our eyes met and he smiled at us.

"Alexis, Karie, Batman," he spoke. He gestured for us to sit in the chairs in front of him. Somehow I ended up sitting in front of him. Another silence filled the air.

Karie breathed. "Hi dad." His eyes softened at the sound of Karie calling him dad.

"Dad," I said, glancing at him.

He smiled before speaking, "How are you two?"

"We're fine," Karie answered.

"Thanks to Bruce Wayne we have a place to stay, and he even gave us a scholarship to Gotham Academy," I explained.

"Make sure you thank him," Dad said.

"We know," I smiled. I was starting to warm up to him, even though it had only been a couple of minutes. I guess it was because I haven't seen my _real_ dad in such a long time, and I... missed him, a lot. He wasn't the alcoholic dad that abused us any more. He was just... dad.

Another silence filled the air, the second or third one today. Dad looked down at his hands. "I have something that I need to tell you both."

"What is it dad?" Karie asked.

"Your mother knew that both you had gotten some of her psychic blood once you were born," Dad began. "So as you two grew older, she was writing a book about your psychic powers. How to control it, make yourself stronger, etc. That book is under your mothers desk."

We stared at him eyes wide.

"Why are you telling us this?" I asked.

He grinned. "I've seen the two of you on the news fighting crime. I just wanted to let you know that I'm proud of you two, and that I'm so sorry."

"It's okay dad," Karie said. We both got up and walked to the other side of the table, both of us hugging our dad.

"We forgive you," I whispered. "We forgive you."

When we pulled away, Dad was beaming. "I love you both."

"We love you too, dad," Karie said gently.

"Thank you for bringing them here," Dad said, his gaze switching to Batman. He just nodded, when the most amazing thing happened, he started to smile.

"Bye dad, see you soon," Karie said.

"Good bye," he said. He looked at Karie before facing me when he asked a question that caught me completely off guard. "Alexis, where did you get the hair pin from?"

I stared at my dad, my eyes wide again. He noticed the pin Dick gave me. I blushed at the thought of explaining to my dad that a boy who lives in the same house as I do gave it to me. "It was a gift from a... friend."

Karie burst into laughter, I sent her an annoyed glare, which only made her laugh even more.

Dad raised an eyebrow at me. "Who is this, friend of yours?"

I could feel my cheeks darken. "We go to the same school. His name is Richard."

Dad started to fume a bit. "A _boy_ gave it to you?"

"Yeah..." I answered awkwardly. I could hear Karie trying to stifle her laughter, which only made me feel even more embarrassed.

"You wouldn't mind telling me more about this fellow, would you Dilan?" Dad asked slyly. That was when I started to panic. Whenever dad called us by our middle name, it meant that we were in trouble.

"Oh, look at the time, we're going to be late for dinner. Bye, dad!" I mumbled quickly, racing out of the room. What I didn't know was that Dad had asked Karie to explain to him who Richard was once I ran out the door.

"Richard is Bruce Wayne's son. He is the same age as Alexis, and has become quite fond of my little sister," Karie explained, a smirk growing on her face. "Oh, and Alexis has become quite fond of him as well."

One of dad's veins popped out of his head, at the news. He sighed. "Make sure that he doesn't hurt her."

"I will," I promised. "Bye, dad."

Dad calmed down and smiled at me. "Bye."

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**October 23RD 9:17 p.m.**

I sat on my bed, thinking about todays events. First the therapy, then visiting dad.

_"Do you still want to continue?" asked Black Canary._

I hugged my legs. I knew what Black Canary had really meant by the question. She asked me if I still wanted to continue working as a heroine. I wasn't sure if I did or not, but after dad said that he was proud of Karie and I for fighting crimes how can I say no? I sighed. All of this is so much to take in. I got up and grabbed my diary, sitting down in my office chair, opening and reading the past entries. The last one was dated back in September. I grabbed a pen and turned to a new page. Scribbling down todays date, I began to write about the events of the past month or so, before writing about todays events.

**Today the team was suppose have individual therapy sessions about the last training exercise. Karie went first, before me. The talk with Black Canary made me feel a bit better, but I'm still traumatized. In the middle of my session, Batman told Black Canary to send me to the doors. Batman took Karie and I to go speak with our dad, by his request. It felt nice to just talk to him without having to worry about him getting angry and throwing objects at us. He told us that mom had written a book especially for us, about our powers. Which reminds, Karie and I should go pick it up tomorrow. As we were saying goodbye to dad, he asked me where I got my song bird pin from. I was embarrassed at the thought of having to explain to my dad that a boy had given it to me. That boy sure has my heart though. I never told Black Canary this, but I was scared of losing him during the exercise. If he was gone, then I would have truly felt alone. Maybe I should write one of those letters when someone who has passed writes about the last few things that they couldn't say.**

I put my diary down and grabbed a piece of white paper and began to write.

_**Dear Everyone,**_

_**By the time you're reading this, I'm probably gone. I don't want anyone of you to grieve over me for a long period of time, alright? You know how much I hate it when people cry or are sad. Smiling is better. Anyways in this letter I just wanted to write a few of the things I know I won't be able to say once I'm gone. For starters, Karie once dad is out and mom is awake make sure to stay positive. I love you mom, dad and Karie. Thanks Bruce, for caring for Karie and I, oh and Alfred too. Alfred, your cooking was the best. Wally, Artemis, try not to fight so much. Then again, watching the two of you argue always brought a smile to my face. I'm gonna miss that. Kaldur, I always looked up to you as an older brother. Thank you for teaching me so much. Connor, Wolf, Sphere, there was always something to do in the cave with you guys there. I'm gonna miss playing around. M'gann, that grilled cheese you made me was delicious. Yum. Thanks for being there for me when I needed help for that date with that jerk.**_

I paused for a moment. I had written about everyone except for... Dick. I sighed, before my pen began to scribble away on the piece of paper.

_**Do you remember the first time we met? I know I'll never forget it. If I never met you, my life would be so different. I would've never have gotten this songbird pin from you. It means a lot to me. Why? Maybe because you gave it to me. Maybe I feel like your always there when I wear it. I like both reasons. Although I still wonder why you gave it to me in the first place. When you first gave it to me, I thought you gave it to me as a gift to a friend, but after the incident with Alfred walking in on us, I started to think that you might share the same feelings that I have for you.**_

I blushed at the memory. Dick had shown me his little room, and when we just stood there smiling at each other, he started to lean in. My mind was thinking of some many things at the moment, but my heart was in control. I began to lean in as well when Alfred called us for dinner.

_**What confused me though was that I had just gone on my first date with Shane the day before. He tried to kiss me, but I pushed him away, telling him that I've never had a first kiss before. Which was true, but in all honesty, it was because the idea of kissing Shane just didn't feel right. I guess I might as well quit stalling and get right to the point, I love you Dick Grayson. I might never get the chance to say those words to you one day, so I'm writing it in this letter. I guess the most disappointing part of all of this is that I'll never get to know if you love me back.**_

_**I hope you all live well, best regards from yours truly, **__**Alexis Dilan Henderson.**_

I folded the letter neatly and slipped it carefully into an envelope. I grabbed a red marker and wrote 'Good Bye' on the envelope in neat printing. I got up from my desk and slipped it into the drawer of my night stand. _I hope that when I do pass, which I hope isn't any time soon not to jinx it, someone will find my letter._

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	16. Fate

**Roanoke Island**

**November 6TH 12:01 p.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

I got up clutching the right side of my hand with my hand, recovering from being knocked back by Klarion's shield. It was just impenetrable. Each time someone tried to run and break at it, they would just get sent flying back hitting the hard dirt floor of the island. I heard an arrow fly, then the sound of more of that annoying laughter. _Ugh, I wish I read something in the book mom wrote that would stop that annoying laugh of his. _A few days after dad told Karie and I about the book, we went to go get it. Karie and I spent days reading and trying out some of the techniques mom had written in the book. Since we had only learned a few of the basics, none of our powers compared to Klarion's sorcery at the moment. Maybe we should train with M'gann some time later.

I could feel the heat rushing through Klarion's fingers, signaling that he was using his sorcery. The sound of his weird cats meow turned into a snarling roar as he knocked Superboy back. I shook my head trying to regain my sight. When I finally came to, I noticed that Robin's head was rushing with an unusual amount of heat. I snapped my head in his direction, to see that he had been knocked out cold. Now that I think about it, he's been knocked out since Klarion hit him. I ran over to him and shook him. His eyes fluttered open.

"Valkyrie?" he asked, a bit dazed. I smiled, relieved that he was awake and alright. "I'm here." He smiled back at me. I heard the sound of Aqualad's water mallets banging angrily against Klarion's barrier.

"What happened?" Robin asked looking around before facing me, his expression now emotionless.

"Nothing much, after you and Artemis were knocked out, everyone charged at Klarion," I answered. "Right now, we're still not making much progress." I found my sword lying a few feet away from where I sat, and crawled over to it. I picked it up and examined it. It was broken and busted up it in every place. I sighed. _Maybe I should've chose a better close combat weapon. _I thought, thinking about how bad I was as a swordsman. It's been over a month since I've started to use it, and it just doesn't feel right. I guess I'll just have to talk to Batman about it later. I looked up at Robin, sitting a few feet away from me. I held my sword up and wiggled it in the air at Robin. "Got any spares?"

He stood up and reached into his back pocket pulling out his staff. "I don't use it a lot, but don't go around breaking it." I spun the staff in my hands a few times. It felt comfortable, but different from my sword. I grinned at Robin. "You don't trust me?" Robin's lips twitched into a small smile before Klarion interrupted our conversation.

"So, you teamed up with the grown ups, huh?" Klarion said. "Teamwork is so over-rated." The sudden rush of heat in his fingers grew 10 times hotter. A blue light shot out of the gem stuck in the ground. As I was analyzing the electricity, I failed to notice Klarion send one at me. My eyes widen when I saw Robin run in front of me, taking the hit.

"Robin!" I exclaimed, running up by his side. I let my guard down, and Klarion took me out with the lightning as well. That's when the world went black.

* * *

><p><strong>Kitsune's Pov<strong>

Klarion took out Valkyrie, Robin and Artemis with ease. I bit my lip. How am I suppose to fight against a Lord of Chaos? All I have are two half's of two sai's and my voice. _Ugh, why did Valkyrie have to be knocked out? She's the one with the powerful voice. _I scrunched my eyebrows up in frustration. I couldn't use my physic abilities either because I was still learning the basics. My face blanked when I remembered that I could make someone faint with a look in the eye. A plan quickly started to forge in my head, and I was running at Klarion.

"Hey Klarion!" I shouted, trying to catch his attention.

"Who are you? A new addition to your little gang? I'll just take you out with the rest of them," Klarion's attention was on mine. I breathed. _This has to do something._ I could feel a strange rush of adrenaline flowing through me. When I heard the sound of Klarion flicking his wrist, I snapped my eyes open, staring at Klarion. I could hear Aqualad stop to look at me, but I paid him no attention. Klarion was staring at me, his arms now hanging limply at his sides. I rose my hands and tried out a little of my physic genes. I forced his arms behind his back, my eyes looking at his. He seemed to be in quite a daze, for not even trying to make a move.

_"It's the gem, at the center of the pentagram, destroy and we win," _Billy's voice emitted in my head.

"Zatanna," called Aqualad.

"Stop!" cried Kid Flash.

My concentration broke when a blinding light flooded my vision. I quickly jumped away from Klarion and stared at the source of the light. There hovering in mid-air, was Zatanna—I mean, Doctor Fate. I didn't know how, but I knew that this could only end in defeat. Even if Doctor Fate was now here.

* * *

><p><em>"Miss Martian, Kid Flash, Kitsune, over here," <em>said Aqualad. I helped Miss Martian levitate Robin, Valkyrie and Artemis, over to the area Kid Flash and Aqualad were waiting in.

"The gem, Billy said that if we could destroy it, then the worlds will merge back as one," Miss Martian quickly spoke.

"The plan?" I asked Aqualad.

"Miss Martian, Kitsune and I will help Fate break down Klarion's barrier," Aqualad explained. He turned to face Kid Flash, before continuing. "Once it's down, run and grab it. Give it to Fate, and Fate will know what to do from there. Go!"

The three of us ran at Klarion's barrier, doing whatever we could to get through. Kid Flash had run off a little ways away from us, so we could break it down and he could come in. Miss Martian was throwing all sorts of objects at the barrier, from boulders, to trees. Aqualad was pounding at it with his water mallets. I wasn't quite sure how they worked, but they seemed to solidified at his commanded. I was trying to pierce through his barrier with my sai's. It might not have been as strong as Miss Martian's projectiles or Aqualad's mallets, but Batman had upgraded them so that they were strong enough to cut through platinum. He even made them contractable so that I could make it look like a bar of metal. I could even connect them by the hilts, making an odd bow staff. How he made it so light or even did all this, I'm not sure, but they were doing a pretty good job now.

Klarion let out a scream of frustration and fell to the ground. Fate quickly took advantage of it and locked in him in some sort of cuffs. He started to struggle to move, but I just screamed for him to freeze.

"Now Kid!" Aqualad ordered. Kid Flash quickly ran over and swiped the gem out of the pentagram. He threw the gem at Fate shouting, "Doc! Catch!" Fate caught the gem with ease and didn't hesitate to voice a spell to destroy it. Once Fate finished the spell, four other evil sorcerers appeared in the outer circles of the pentagram.

"They sure don't make evil sorcerers like they use too. Oh well." Klarion snapped his fingers and the cuffs around him disappeared. "Fun while it lasted. Teekl." The over sized cat was inches away from biting Superboy's head off. He immediately stopped when Klarion called for him, and jumped from Superboy. As he made his way to Klarion, he began to shrink in size and return to his normal, house cat look. Once Teekl was in his arms, he opened up a portal, that probably led to his own dimension. "See you later armadillos, unless I see you first." I could've sworn that he glanced at Valkyrie, but he jumped into his portal laughing before I could ask.

* * *

><p><strong>Valkyrie's Pov<strong>

"Wake up," came a commanding voice. I immediately snapped my eyes open. When I noticed that I was facing the sky, I sat up and looked around. Artemis and Robin seemed to have recovered from Klarion's attack as well, seeing that they were struggling to stand.

"What happened?" I asked Kitsune as she helped me up. Her gaze turned over to something behind me. Human nature had me turn around and see what was there. My eyes widened, my mouth falling open slightly at the sight. There flying a good amount above us was Zatanna, clad in the Fate armor. Including, the helmet. "No way."

"Did we win?" asked Robin, a hand over his other arm.

"At a cost," Aqualad answered. Zatara walked past us, everyone else's gaze on him. "Fate!" Zatanna breathed before continuing. "Great Nabu, release my daughter." There was that silence filled tension in the air as we all waited for Nabu to answer Zatara. "No." Everyone's face fell even more. Doctor Fate was taking away one of our team mates and friends away from us. Especially away from her father.

"When the balance is disrupted, Fate is needed. And the girl's own natural ability for the mystic arts make her the perfect candidate for it," Nabu said.

"You can't do that!" Artemis yelled.

"You can't take away her freedom!" I added.

"She has her own life to live!" Robin shouted. I turned my gaze to focus on Robin. He had an angry expression on his face, but even if he was wearing that domino mask, I could tell that his eyes were flooded with worry. I looked back Nabu like everyone else, but doubts couldn't stop from popping into my mind.

"Kent would never allow you—" Kid Flash started only to be cut off by Fate.

"Kent Nelson did object strenuously, so I released his spirit to the after life. He's gone." Kid Flash could only stare at Nabu with shock.

Everyone looked at one another to see if there were anyway we could still convince Fate to free Zatanna. The idea of speaking to him with Kitsune's and my powers might have worked, but he was a master sorcerer. "Take me instead." Everyone stayed silent. Zatara was offering his own body and mind for his daughters._ He really loves her._ "My skills are already at their peak. My body is physically stronger, better able to withstand the strain of your power."

"All true," agreed Fate. My heartbeat began to race a bit. Fate was starting to agree with Zatara's idea. If this goes through, then Zatanna— "But if I remove the helmet, what guarantee will prove you'll don it?"

"My word," said Zatara. He lifted his arms and recited a spell of some kind. Fate descended and landed in front of Zatara and took off the helmet. Fate's armor disappeared and Zatanna appeared from under it all. "Dad!" Zatanna and Zatara quickly hugged each other.

"Remember, I love you," whispered Zatara. He kissed his daughter's forehead before facing us. "Take care of my daughter."

"You have my word," said Batman. Zatara took the helmet from Zatanna and began to put it on. Robin ran by her side, placing a hand on her shoulder only to have it knocked off while Zatanna started pleading for her dad to stop. I felt my heart drop. _She's losing her dad. Her only family. _Fate appeared once again. The only difference, it was Zatara under the helmet and armor. Fate instantly disappeared with the four other sorcerers. I quickly ran over to Zatanna. Kid Flash, Artemis and Kitsune doing the same. The look on her face was like the one I had when I first heard about my mom's accident. I quickly enveloped Zatanna in a hug, sharing her pain.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**November 7TH 9:16 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

Robin, Artemis, M'gann, Karie and I were helping Zatanna move in to the cave.

"My room is next door if you need anything," M'gann said gently.

"Thanks, but I could uh, really use some alone time," Zatanna said.

"Of course," Artemis spoke. The five us made our way out of Zatanna's new room. Robin stopped at the door, and turned around to look at him, the worried expression clear on his face. Zatanna nodded at Robin and looked at me. The message was clear: _Take care of Robin._ I nodded and gently slipped my hand into his leading him away from her room. I might have blushed thinking about how I had so easily slipped my hand into his, but the heat in Zatanna's cheeks were emitting with pain. Once we got to the living room I looked at Karie and Superboy. They looked at me knowingly and I turned to look away, letting go of Robin's hand. They could hear her crying.

I walked down the halls of the cave aimlessly. Too many thoughts were running through my brain. I wasn't the jealous type of person, but seeing how much Robin cared for her did hurt. At the same time though, I knew her pain and I will always remember it. I bumped into someone, but just a gentle knock in. I looked up at the figure to see Kaldur. "Sorry." His eyes softened, maybe because he knew that I was feeling sad for Zatanna at the moment, or maybe he knew about my Robin problem...

"It's alright, Alexis. Batman wanted to see you," said Kaldur. I nodded and followed Kaldur to the main room. Standing there waiting patiently was Batman.

"Yes?"I asked meekly. I wasn't really in the mood to talk.

"Martian Manhunter is here to train you," said Batman. Martian Manhunter stepped out from behind Batman, nodding at me. Batman walked up to me and whispered into my ear. "After training, I'll be waiting in the cave for your new choice of weapons." After that Batman left without another word.

"Alright, let's get M'gann and your sister here before we start," said Martian Manhunter.

* * *

><p>"Happy?" laughed Klarion.<p>

"Oui, mon ami. Your distraction though a bit extreme, was très effective. Amid your trek of chaos, no one will notice the absence of our prize. And in time, we will bring it into the light."

* * *

><p><strong>I finally updated! Don't worry, my full attention is on this fic right now, so expect an update in maybe a week or so? What should Valkyrie's new weapon be? Remember it's a close combat weapon, not long-range like a bow. Review your ideas.<strong>

'Oui, mon ami.' - 'Yes, my friend.'

'très' - 'very'

**Review, alert or fav!**


	17. Salvage

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**November 11TH 4:05 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

"Recognized, Kid Flash, B03. Zeta-tube network now offline, due to extreme atmospheric conditions." Footsteps rang in the hallway.

"Woah, I just made it," said Wally. I smiled at the thought of surprising Wally, but he probably already knew. Robin was hiding beside behind the couch and smiled at me, before bringing a finger up to his lip. I nodded and silently laughed. "Be a tragedy if I missed my own—"

The lights turned on and everyone jumped and screamed, "Surprise!"

"What? Aw guys, you shouldn't have," Wally said, trying to act surprised. I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"Right, not like you've hinted for days or anything," said Robin, while I laughed at his comment. Wally was going up to everyone and reminding us in every way possible that his birthday was today.

_"Hey Alexis," said Wally, a smug smile on his face._

_"Hey," I said._

_"Do you know what time it is?"_

_"Um, it's about 11," I answered, checking my phone._

_"Oh, well I think **11** is a pretty great number," Wally said. __I stared at him, narrowing my eyes. "Yeah, sure..."_

_"Double digits, the same number. Like the **11**th of the **11**th month," Wally said, wiggling his eyebrows at me. __I stared at him, not knowing what to say. I felt a familiar warmth and excused myself from the conversation._

_"Robin!" I called, running up to him._

_"Something wrong?" he grinned._

_"I just had this weird conversation with Wally about the number 11, you guys are best friends, what's the message he's trying to get across?" I asked Robin. _

_"11?" Robin's grin grew even wider. "That's his birthday, sounds like he's expecting a gift from you."_

_"If he wants a gift, what do you think he would like?" I asked, dumbfounded by the thought of the millions of choices for gifts. Robin's grin faltered into a frown for just 2 seconds before he put on a forced smile. "_

_"I'll help you pick something out." I stared at Robin, before shaking it off as nothing. I bid Robin a short goodbye, before running off to practice telekinesis with M'gann._

"Right, well anyways, happy birthday Wally," I beamed.

"Thanks," Wally replied. Zatanna gave Wally a birthday hat to put on, while M'gann brought out the cakes. Karie placed the candles on them, while Superboy lit them.

"I made two cakes," M'gann said proudly.

"Aw sweet, but what are you guys gonna eat?" asked Wally.

"We'll split the cupcake. Now make a wish!" M'gann exclaimed.

"Way ahead of you," Wally said. He took in a large breath before blowing out the candles. Everyone started to clap for Wally, well, everyone except Artemis. Karie nudged Artemis with her shoulder and laughed.

"Why are you always so unhappy when it comes to Wally?" Karie asked, looking at Artemis with knowing eyes. Artemis turned her head in my direction. I started to laugh at what my sister was implying.

"You know, if I tell you my wish it won't come true. But if you guess...?" Wally said, looking at M'gann hoping she would catch on. M'gann handed Wally the first slice of cake. "Guess again." M'gann kissed Wally on the forehead and told him a happy birthday. Wally's face fell, and looked very disappointed. I could feel the heat from Artemis rising a bit. I walked past Artemis and said, "Looks like someone's jealous..."

The party went on, everyone was smiling, laughing, talking with each other. All in all having a good time. I was talking to Artemis and Karie. The topic: boys and crushes.

"So," I said, batting my eyes at Artemis in an innocent fashion. "Jealous that Wally wants a kiss from M'gann and not you?" Artemis glared at me, before laughing. I stared at her blankly, so not how I expected her to react.

"Me jealous? Of getting kissed by Baywatch? I'd rather kiss a pig," Artemis scoffed.

"Well," said Karie glancing over at Wally. He was stuffing himself with all the food that M'gann had prepared. "Technically, that's what you call stuffing a pig." Artemis narrowed her eyes on my sister. The message was clear: Some friend you are. Karie started to chuckle at Artemis. She patted Artemis on her shoulder. "It's okay to like someone. The next step is admitting it." Artemis looked like she was going to scream at Karie.

"Speaking of birthday boy, he still hasn't figured out that M'gann and Superboy are an item has he?" I asked, jerking a thumb at him.

"I'm going to go ask Zatanna and Robin if I could be the one to tell him, be right back." Artemis walked away a smug smile on her face, or maybe it was a devious grin. Either way, she was going to enjoy telling Wally the news.

"Looks like someone is welcoming the new member in the family," Karie joked. I looked at Zatanna and Robin as Artemis spoke with them. A part of me wished that he had welcomed me better into his home back in Gotham better. He was never around, leaving me all alone again. The only difference was that I lived in the Wayne Manor. With _the_ Bruce Wayne, who was a billionaire. There wasn't anymore screaming, or sounds of objects being thrown, breaking, shattering, or even just falling. There was just quiet. I sighed. "She's lucky."

"Who Zatanna?" Karie asked.

"Her welcoming party is so much nicer," I said with distant eyes.

"Alexis," Karie started, understanding what I was referring too.

"Karie, you know I'm not jealous or upset. I'm not that type of person. Besides, I'm grateful," I said. Karie stared at me, but it seemed like she was thinking about something.

"Attention team, suit up, polar stealth, mission briefing in 5," came Batman's voice over the caves intercom.

* * *

><p>"Where's Flash?" Kid Flash asked Batman. We were all now standing in the usual room of the cave, standing in our polar stealth suits. The majority of our suits changed to protect us from the weather conditions. Kitsune had a long-sleeved parka like Artemis's and Zatanna's with the hood draped over her head. She had specialized goggles from Batman for missions like these and her red bandana was replaced with a white one, only thicker. She wore white winter combat boots and thick white tights. We both wore our own specialized gloves like Robin's, only less high-tech. My suit looked like I all the other girls excluding Miss Martian's. I had a parka like everyone else, except that it wasn't as long as everyone else's, ending at my hip instead of going past it. I had on thick white tights like Kitsune's, but my white boots were more like Robin's. My smoke pellets and bird-a-rangs were all securely in their assigned pockets in my parka. Batman had helped me pick out my new weapon of choice-a retractable bo staff like Robin's except it has its own little perks.<p>

"Flash and Red Tornado already have their assignments," answered Batman. "A massive ice storm has paralyzed North America from coast to coast. Satellite imagery has detected 5 ice fortresses flying unknown, which seem to be responsible and must be stopped."

"But can't the Watch Tower blow them out of the sky or something?" Kid Flash asked.

"So, what's the Watch Tower?" Zatanna asked, glancing at Robin. He kept his eyes trained on Batman, knowing how much he was hating these questions and interruptions.

"The Leagues orbiting headquarters is not weaponized," said Batman, clearly frustrated. "And with both Green Lanterns off world, I need both hands on deck."

Did Batman just say that we were going to get to work with the The League?! The Team and The League fighting **together**?! I tried to contain my excitement but let a small smile slip.

"Does that mean what I think it means. The Team and The League fighting together side by side?" Robin asked, stepping forward, the smile unmistakably across that face of his that I've grown to adore. I blushed at my thought, but everyone was too excited to notice.

"Woah, really?" KF asked, the excitement clear in his voice.

"Superboy, use the Super-Cycle to rendezvous with the Bat Plane at ice fortress 1, you'll drop off Robin and Aqualad, and fly with wolf and Kitsune, to meet up with Red Tornado and Black Canary at Ice Fortress 2," Batman said. "Miss Martian, Zatanna and Artemis, take the bio-ship to drop off Valkyrie at South Dakota and meet up with Green Arrow and Martian Manhunter at ice fortress 3. Other leaguers will deal with fortresses 4 and 5."

I'm getting sent to South Dakota? Batman is clearly trying to test me with my new weapons, gear and gadgets. Might as well not try to detest, after all he has done enough for Karie and I already.

"Uh Batman, I think you forgot me," said Kid Flash. I wanted to tell Kid to stop asking questions, but with Batman right there, I knew better than to speak out-of-place. Of course, Kid didn't know Batman like Robin, Kitsune and I do.

"Kid Flash, there is a young girl in Seattle in need of a heart transplant. With ground and air traffic down, you'll need to pick up the donor heart in Boston and run 3000 miles cross-country," Batman said, quickly explaining his special mission of the day.

"Who's this girl?" Kid Flash asked.

"Kid—" I started, before being cut off by Batman.

"Does it matter?" Batman bit back. I mentally face-palmed. He should know better than to keep on asking unnecessary questions to Batman. Batman was the short and simple type. Kid's asked about 5 by now.

"No, of course not, but can't we zeta—"

"Zeta-tubes are offline, sorry," Robin cut in this time. Kid and I were the only one's on the team not coming to fight in the first ever Team and League team up mission. Even Wolf and sphere were going to be there. I wouldn't complain though.

"Right, speedy delivery boy, at your service."

* * *

><p>"Valkyrie, you are to wait for Kid Flash and make sure that he's making good time. He has four hours to reach the hospital before the heart is no longer viable. He should make it past your check point in 2 hours," said Batman. I nodded, even though he couldn't see me.<p>

"Be careful," came Robin's voice. I smiled at how the worry was barely evident in his voice. Don't want to be too emotional around Batman, huh?

"I will, you two try to make it out with minor injuries as well, Valkyrie out." I cut off our conversation. Miss Martian had dropped me off a few minutes ago before Batman had contacted me. Now, I was waiting in the snow for Kid and some of the traffic monitors. I sat under the bridge, sheltered from the snow and sat there thinking, why could Batman possibly send me as a look out all the way in South Dakota?

"Are you Valkyrie?" I snapped my head to my left to see that there was a police car parked on the side of the road. A police officer was standing a few metres away from me.

"Who wants to know?" I asked playfully.

The police officers were here so they could clear a path for Kid. They offered me some hot chocolate, which I accepted thankfully, but when they offered me to sit in their car to stay warm, I had to refuse. Sure it sounded cool to be sitting in a cop car, but I never wanted to even talk to a police officer. I was more of a rule follower and if sat in a car for rule breakers, then that would make me a hypocrite.

"He should be arriving shortly," said one of the officers, glancing at his watch, before staring out at the empty road. I sighed. All I've done for two hours was making a bit of short talk with the coppers and standing in the snow storm.

My eyes were closed, thinking about psychic techniques when a heat signature made me snap my eyes open. My head shot in the direction of the bridge above, and I could make out a dark figure standing on the rim of the bridge. The husky figure jumped, landing in front of us. An officer ran at him only to be knocked aside. Another one came at him, only to be thrown at the legs of the other two. With all the officers down, I examined the man. He was very built, had greasy black hair up to his chin and tanned skin. I reached into my right pocket, wrapping my hand around a smoke pellet. "Who are you?"

"I'm Savage. Vandal Savage. A pleasure to meet you," he said, bowing his head.

"Valkyrie," I said curtsying. My hand drew out of the pocket and I quickly whipped the smoke pellet at Vandal. With about 5 seconds to stall, I ran behind him, about to place a bird-a-rang in his pocket when a hand flew out of the smoke and snow, grabbing my head.

"Pathetic little girl. Did you really think that you could beat Vandal Savage?" His laughter was booming loud and frightening at the same time. A flash of bright red and yellow ran past us. _Kid Flash making good time to Seattle, check. _I thought. Vandal stared at me, an evil grin across his face. causing his scars to shift. He brought his face beside my ear and whispered words that I never thought would come out of _his _mouth. He pulled back and smiled, obviously happy with my reaction. Bringing myself back to the situation at hand, I flipped forward and brought down my right foot on Vandal's horrid face. Using his head as a boost, I flipped off Vandal and slid on my feet. I held a hand against the snow to slow down my movement and quickly came to a stop. A red-gloved hand was now on my shoulder.

"You okay, Val?" came Kid's voice. I nodded my head, not really trusting my voice. I stood and brushed off some snow on my sleeves. I looked up at Kid to see that he was concerned. I looked at him and assured him I was fine, when Vandal spoke.

"Little heroes, do you really think you have what it takes to survive Vandal Savage?" he asked, a smug smirk on his face. I've never heard of this guy before, but he was different from the other freaks I've been up against. "When I heard they were closing down a path across country, I thought I would meet with Flash himself. He and I are due for some reckoning."

I could hear Kid growl beside, and could feel the heated anger build up inside of him. "Kid," I warned him. "Go, you have a life to save."

"I guess I'll just have to make him miserable by killing his brat side-kick then," Vandal said, clearly amused by all of this. That's when Kid Flash ran at him. He pushed Vandal back a few feet, but other than that Vandal wasn't affected.

"Valkyrie, tech 4-2!" Kid exclaimed. I nodded and ran off into the nearby woods, whilst Kid started run around Vandal.

"You are literally running circles around me," Vandal said sarcastically. I watched the two, hidden away in a nearby tree. Technique 4-2 was originally something Kid and Robin were suppose to use, but I was the only other person on the team with acrobatic abilities not as great as Robin's, but higher than everyone else. Kid was supposed to distract the target by running circles around them, when Kid would create an opening for the Robin. Robin would then jump and knock the target out. I held a bird-a-rang in my hand. I looked at it sternly.

_"It will go off 4 seconds after activation. Hit, or place it on your target, then move." _Robin had explained to me. My grasp on the projectile tightened, before I continued to watch Kid Flash and Vandal. Vandal grabbed at Kid's head, but Kid quickly ran behind him and slammed into Vandal. Taking that as my cue, I quickly ran off the large branch and flew in the air. I began to do a layout flip in the air and managed to kick Vandal in the head. I jumped off of his head once more and landed on his shoulders, my legs hanging over the front of his shoulders. When I bent backwards to place the bird-a-rang in his pocket for the second time, he grabbed my hand. My eyes widening in surprise, I quickly threw a smoke pellet with my free hand and back-hand springed away from Vandal.

"Kid, go!" I ordered, my powers kicking in. He immediately began to run again, this time back to Seattle.

Vandal glanced down at his watch before speaking, "That should be enough." I stared at him confused by his words, when he walked up to me. I reached into a pocket and pulled out my bo staff, but as I swung Vandal caught me by the arm again. "Don't forget, the light will always be shining down on you, and the shadows will always be lurking by."

Vandal knocked me in my temple. I fell to the snow, the cold biting at me skin. My vision began to blur, and Savage's image grew smaller. I started to see double's, and I think I heard some officers screaming at me. I didn't last another 3 seconds when my mind finally caved into the pain.

So much for being careful.

* * *

><p><strong>I know there isn't as much romancefluff but it's because the plot is really starting to kick in soon. But I promise there will be some real soon.**

**Review, alert or fav!**


	18. Puzzle

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**November 12TH 5:52 p.m.**

**Karie's Pov**

I stood there leaning against the wall, staring at the motionless body on the infirmary bed. I could still remember the emotions I felt when I found out that Valkyrie had been knocked out cold by Savage on her mission. The anger, the worry, and the fright. Odd thing was though, now, I was in a bad mood for another reason. I heard footsteps from down the hall and waited for the person to walk in the room. When the person did I glared at him, not enough to make him faint but just enough to send a shill down his spine. I said the person's name announcing my presence in the room, but it came out as a cold warning.

"Richard." Said person froze in surprise. I would've smirked in victory, but my anger was too strong. The first thing he said to me though, made me even more annoyed.

"Shh, Superboy can hear us you know."

I gritted my teeth. That's what he cared about right now. I rolled my eyes and continued to glare. He seemed to try to glare back, but stopped to speak again.

"So, what put you in such a bad mood?" he let a smirk slip on to that face of his.

I felt a vain beginning to pop out of my forehead. I snapped at Richard in anger. "Why shouldn't I be in a bad mood? My sister's got a concussion, and all you can do is toy around with people! And I thought you cared." I crossed my arms over my chest, and huffed in frustration.

Silence filled the room. I could only slip a smirk. I got to snap at him, and at least give him a hint about what was so irritating. He seemed to be thinking about something as he stared distantly, but his shades made it seem as if he were looking at me.

"I do care."

My ears twitched at the barely audible sound waves. I raised a hand behind my ear and spoke, "Speak up, I couldn't hear you."

I could've sworn Richard faltered, but he just continued. "I _do_ care."

"Like that'll be enough to prove anything," I spat. "Prove to me that you do care. No, scratch that. Prove to **Alexis **that _you do care_."

He seemed to have enough of me speaking him up and fought back. "And why do you seem to care about my loyalties to a person?"

"Easy, because I see my sister and I see how she always doubts herself and her relationship with you. I see how she looks at you, and I see how you look at her _and_ Zatanna. I heard what happened down in the Bat Cave, I heard all the times you would swoop in and tuck her in. When I saw my sister the most happiest was when she was with you." My voice had faded into a small whisper by the end of my answer. "I'm not telling you to pick my sister over Zatanna, I'm just telling you to make up your mind, and figure out your relationship with her."

I stormed out of the room walking down the hallway to the gym. I started to run on the treadmill, my senses forgetting reality. Run. All I could do was run away from my problems, my pain and my fear. All I could do was run.

* * *

><p><strong>Dick's Pov<strong>

I was distraught by everything Karie had just said. I was hurting Alexis? Mentally? Doubting herself. Doubting our relationship as friends or something else. All because of **me**. My head swiveled to stare at the body lying in bed, breathing into an oxygen mask. I sat down in a chair beside the bed and stared at Alexis. I needed to figure everything out. My relationship with Alexis, and my feelings towards her and Zatanna.

Zatanna: It makes me want to cheer her up when she's down. I can't help but want to see her smile. The way she encourages me to be as me as I want, I can't help but feel as though I can be as Dick Grayson as I want, even though she sees me as Robin.

Alexis: Her smile, her voice, it gives me a warm feeling in my stomach. She always smiles even during rough times. It's amazing how she always seems to comfort you and make you smile, even though she's had it rough before. She always sees me as Dick Grayson, excluding the fact that she knows my secret identity, she sees me as that mischievous guy, who can't help but act a bit goofy at times.

I smiled at Alexis. "You're a real piece of work. That's alright though, 'cause I'm ready for the challenge when it comes to."

A while later, Batman, M'gann and Martian Manhunter walked into the room. Batman eyed for me to move. I stood up beside him, but what I saw next was unbelievable. Manhunter and M'gann were playing a memory. Who's? Valkyries. Vandal had appeared and was taking out the officers with ease. As Valkyrie introduced herself, she through a bird-a-rang at him. I smirked, recalling the time I was teaching her how to throw them. That ended with one exploding in my face. Of course, Alexis called it an accident, but I was a little rough on her.

In the cover of the smoke and snow, she ran at Vandal. She was about to place a bird-a-rang in his coat pocket, (that's a new one) but Vandal just grabbed on to her arm before lifting her up by the head with his other hand.

"Pathetic little girl. Did you really think that you could beat Vandal Savage?" Vandal laughed at the thought, before stopping and staring at Valkyrie right in the eyes. He moved closer to her and whisper, "Well, well, well. You look familiar. A lot like that Bailey Henderson that we used to use to create mass havoc with. I heard she's in a coma now. Tsk, tsk, you might not want to take some pointers from her, you wouldn't want to end up like her now do you?" Vandal pulled away with a smug grin on his face. A flash of red and yellow ran by, only to stop and run at Vandal. Vandal, surprised by the sudden force, let go of Valkyrie.

Valkyrie managed to convince KF to keep running to Boston, but that's when everything started to look bleak. Valkyrie tried once more to set a bird-a-rang in his coat pocket, only to have Vandal grab her arm again.

"Don't forget, the light will always be shining down on you, and the shadows will always be lurking by," spoke Vandal.

That's when the whole puzzle came together. The picture Batman found at the Control Center a month ago wasn't from The Injustice League. Someone must've snuck in and placed it there _while _we defeated them. Someone like Vandal. He chose a picture of Alexis' mom because Alexis resembled her the most. Because he knew that other than Alexis' mom or even Karie, she was the easiest to target and the best one to help them with whatever plans they have. Because they knew the extent of her powers better than anyone in the team or even from the League. Because they knew, if they had her powers, she could bring Earth to its knees.

I looked up at Batman. He understood what was going on as well. His eyes were narrowed in thought, probably deciding whether or not we should go after Vandal, The Light and The Shadows.

"For now, Alexis will be withdrawn from the team and I will train her myself." Batman stormed out of the room, the only sound was the flutter of his cape when he turned.

"Alexis, isn't part of the team any more?" I turned my head to see M'gann looking really confused. She faced me and looked at me expectantly for answers. I shook my head and looked at Alexis. Batman might've made the right choice, but in M'gann's eyes it was probably a rash one. Alexis twitched a little, before her eyes fluttered open. She looked at me with those brilliant brown eyes of hers.

"I'll go tell Karie," said M'gann. Manhunter followed her out the door, leaving me to be the one to tell Alexis the news.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

My eyes fell to the floor. I knew she wasn't going to react well. Thanks a lot Batman. "Alexis, Batman is taking you off the team."

* * *

><p><strong>Next chapter will hopefully be posted soon.<strong>

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	19. Be Back Soon Party

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**November 12TH 5:52 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

The news added to all the things that happened yesterday. It was too much. I bursted into tears and felt Dick wrap his arms around me comfortingly. He was trying to calm me down, and it was working.

"It's going to be okay. There's no way Vandal's going to get you," he hushed.

"My powers, Dick I could kill people!" I sobbed. I must've looked like just as pathetic. "I could bring the world to its knees."

"You'd never do something like that though," he said. "Listen, Bats will teach you everything he knows, Karie will play some music with you, Alfred will make you some cookies, you could cook with M'gann, make fun of Wally, laugh with Artemis, spar with Kaldur, work on the bikes with Connor, Canary could help you with your powers, and Martian Manhunter too, even ride on Wolf. But no matter what you do, I'll be there."

"Even if Vandal made me kill you, you'll still stand by my side?" I croaked, my crying and sobbing seizing. Everything he said. Everything I could do, he'd still be there for me.

"Even if Vandal made you kill me, I'll rescue you from him," he seemed to promise. I wrapped my arms around him and rested my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It seemed to have its own little happy beat. "Come on."

I looked at him. "What?"

"Come on, I want to take you some where," he said. He pointed at the clothes on the nightstand. "Those are from M'gann."

I changed quickly, not sure where he was taking me, but curiosity got the better of me. I found him on one of the lower levels of the cave, leaning on a bike. "Where are we going?"

"I don't think you've ever actually been to Happy Harbor before, so nows a good time too," he answered. He got on the bike and smiled at me to hop on.

* * *

><p>"If I fall, I'm so telling Batman, you forced me on the thing," I smiled, putting on the other helmet.<p>

Dick revved the engine and we sped off down the streets of Happy Harbor. I had my hands clasped on around Dick's waist, and was blushing to no end. We stopped at a small ice cream store. We sat at one of the small tables outside the store and ate our ice cream. We talked about the most random things, but it got my mind off everything.

"Hey, you have something on your nose," Dick said.

"I do?" I asked, cheeks turning a bright pink.

"Right," Dick leaned over and placed his finger on the tip of my nose. The coldness of his finger surprised me. "there."

My hand rubbed my nose. I frowned when I saw the white ice cream melting on my finger. Dick bursted out laughing.

"I can't believe you fell for that!" He laughed.

I hated those moments when you tried not to laugh and stay angry. I hated them because I always ended up laughing in the end. We tossed our empty cups of ice cream in the trash, before hoping back on Dick's bike. I'm still surprised that no one called the cops on him yet. He obviously didn't have a license yet.

We passed by the beach and slowly came to a stop. Standing there on the shore, I was breath-taken. Even if it was a bit colder than usual, the scenery was amazing.

"We should come here next summer," Dick suggested.

I nodded in agreement. "Definitely." I could only imagine how amazing this beach would be in the summer.

"Let's get back to the cave, it's getting late," Dick said, placing the helmet on me from behind. To bad it hid my growing smile, but it did hide my blush.

Walking down the cave was quiet, but not awkward. We just didn't know what to say. I glanced at Dick and a smile grew on my face immediately. "Thanks, I really needed that."

Dick didn't say anything, but just lead me to the kitchen. Once I stepped into the room, the rest of the team jumped and screamed "Surprise!"

"What?" I was at a lost for words. I read the sign hung up behind them. 'Be Back Soon!' I smiled at the banner. "How'd you guys know?"

"Batman told us," Kaldur answered. "M'gann, Superboy and Karie already knew as well."

"So happy 'Be Back Soon' party!" Wally exclaimed.

Artemis elbowed him in the rib cage. "She's leaving Baywatch, you're not suppose to be happy about it!"

"You guys didn't have to," I laughed at Artemis and Wally.

"We know," smiled Connor.

"How'd you guys manage to get this done so fast? I was only out with Robin for almost an hour and a half," I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You're welcome," Karie grinned, before letting out a laugh.

"Superboy and Kaldur helped with the sign. Wally got the supplies," M'gann started.

"Well, tried to, until he ended up eating most of it," Artemis explained. "So I had to go with him."

"You're welcome," Karie grinned again. Artemis joined me in frowning at my sister.

"Karie helped with cooking, while Artemis and Wally finished with the decor and set-up," M'gann finished. "Oh, and Robin was the distraction team."

"You guys are the best," I smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Not as long as the original, but I still like it. :) Review, alert and fav!<strong>


	20. Happy Birthday

**Gotham City**

**November 21ST 10:54 p.m.**

**Third Person's Pov**

Footsteps rang throughout one of the dark alleyways in Gotham. The foot steps came to a stop and voices could be heard.

"Eh, you got something?" a husky male voice asked.

"Tsk, maybe I do maybe I don't," came a raspy voice.

"How much it's goin' to be?" the husky voice asked.

"Depends on how much you got," the raspy one said.

"400, 2 ounces," the husky one stated.

The two took out two different items. One with a little baggie of what looked like flour, the other, a wad of cash. They one with the raspy voice took the money and counted it quickly. He nodded and chucked the little baggie at the other guy, before breaking out into a sprint in the opposite direction.

1, 2, 3.

A large figure jumped down from above and sent a right hook at the man with the bag of flour. In less than 3 seconds, the mysterious figure had the guy handcuffed.

4, 5, 6.

A flash of yellow, white and black was running after the other man. The other man turned and was surprised to see a glowing yellow slits staring right back at him. He quickened his pace and turned left, trying to escape the mysterious animal. The man turned another corner, only to see the yellow, white and black figure standing in front of him. He let out a girly scream at the sudden appearance and was about to turn around, when we was met with the pair of yellow eyes again. The man pulled out a gun and pointed at the strange, but mesmerizing eyes.

"S-stay back, I-I'm warning you!" he screamed.

"Isn't that just cute." The man tensed, the gun shaking in his trembling hands. "You know, guns are more dangerous when the person wielding it actually knows how to use it." The man turned right, only to be greeted by those startling eyes. A nearby street light flickered, before completely turning on. A shadow cast down in every alleyway, leaving the man in the middle. "Show yourself, you coward!"

The man was surprised to see a girl clad in white and gold step out from the shadows. Her eyes were eerily yellow. She had odd brown and red hair mixed matched into one another and a golden cowl that covered half her face, the only other openings were for her eyes. She wore white leggings, and a matching pair of long sleeves. Her yellow utility belt hung around her hips. Her black boots went just under her knees. The girl smiled and swung her right leg at the mans hands. The gun fell right out, and before the man could make a move, the girls left leg came swinging back. "Ouch, that's gonna leave a mark."

7, 8, 9.

* * *

><p><strong>Valkyrie's Pov<strong>

That's how many days it's been since I've started training with Batman. He gave me a utility belt on my 3rd day, and we started to go out for the nightly patrol while Kitsune and Robin were relieved of it. I have to admit, waking up at 6:30 in the morning to get ready for school was not fun. Especially when you stayed up until 2 in the morning kicking some guys butt.

"Well done, your progress in the past 9 days are great," said Batman. Batman and I were standing on top of a random apartment building not far from where we busted the drug deal. I smiled at his comment and decided to compliment Batman as well. "That's because I have a great teacher."

It was one of those once in a life time moments that you just can't forget. The corners of Batman's lips were curved upwards just enough to call it a smile. Definitely not regretting becoming a super hero now.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Gotham Academy<strong>

**November 26TH 3:27 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

"Happy birthday!" Artemis exclaimed. I turned around and smiled at her, closing my locker. "Everyone else wishes you a great one too."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Come on Artemis, you have to go help me find my baby sister a gift!" Karie said, dragging Artemis out of the school.

I narrowed my eyes at my sister. "I'm not a baby, I'm 14 today!"

"Which means that the birthday girl deserves to be treated like a 14 year-old."

"I turned back around and saw Dick standing there, his usual smirk residing on his face. "Happy birthday, Dilan."

I felt blood rushing through my cheeks at the sound of my middle name and forced myself to act casual. "Thanks Dick."

He grabbed my hand and we ran all the way to the Wayne Manor. Once we stopped, I started to take in large breathes. That wasn't for very long though, because he pulled me upstairs and into my room. He released my hand from his grasp, but I prefered it tangled in his. He walked over to my night stand and pick up something. Walking back over to me, he placed the songbird pin in my hand. "Put it on and something nice, we're going out." He left my room quickly, shutting the door and leaving me very confused.

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**November 26TH 5:14 p.m.**

**Dick's Pov**

I was waiting for Alexis down by the stair case. I was clad in my usual black leather jacket, a red and black plaid, a black tie and a pair of jeans. My hair was left out loose and my face was clear of any masks or sunglasses. I've planned for this day since Batman had relieved Kitsune and I from night watch duty. It was going to be perfect. We were going to go to the Winter Festival, down in the heart of Gotham. Then, I was going to take Alexis to the park that she loves so much and tell her what Karie had scolded me about.

_When did you become so romantic?_

I frowned at my inner voice. _**Okay, so I might've got a bit of help from Wally, **_**a****_nd it's a bit like the time I took Alexis around_** _**Gotham**_.**_ This time though it is a date. Only me and Alexis, out for a special night._**

My conversation with myself was disrupted when I heard footsteps from upstairs. I looked up the grand staircase and my eyes fell on the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. Alexis was dressed in beige-coloured half-sleeve dress. As she walked down the flight of steps I examined the dress. It had a different golden design around the shoulder, sleeve ends, and at the ends of the dress. It ended just at her knees. Instead of her ivory skin though, she wore black leggings for warmth. She had on a pair of those warm boots in the light brown shade. I realized that I had examined everything but Alexis herself. My head snapped back up and I couldn't help but smile, my heart speeding up a bit. Alexis had curled her soft brown-red hair into funnels. They flowed around her shoulders, but never losing its form. She had clipped up her bangs with the songbird pin, which shined from the light of the grand chandelier. She couldn't have looked any more perfect.

Alexis looked at me and stared down at herself consciously. Sh fiddled with the hems of her dress and asked me, "I over did it didn't I?"

"When I said change into something nice, this was definitely not what I expected," I said. Alexis' head seemed to fall even more. "It's so much better." Alexis' eyes peaked up at me, giving me a better view of the blush on her cheeks. I walked up to her and held her chin up so that her whole face was facing me. "You look beautiful." Alexis' eyes fluttered in shock, and the blush that had appeared on her cheeks had only deepened in colour. I held out my arm for her and waited for her to lock with mine. She took it hesitantly and allowed me to guide her out on our date.

"So where are we going?" Alexis asked me.

"You'll see," I said, much to her annoyment.

"I let you drag me all the way home, so you could at least tell me where we're going on this date?" Alexis argued.

I raised an eyebrow quizzically at her and smirked. "I never said that we were going on a date."

Alexis' cheeks became a bright red, probably from blushing or embarrassment. Maybe even both. "But since you are the birthday girl, let's call it one."

For the rest of the ride to the festival, Alexis was trying to avoid looking at me. Of course, I caught her plenty of times catching a quick peak. The black car came to a stop and I helped Alexis out, being a bit chivalrous. Shutting the door Alexis walked on a short ways ahead, enough to be out of hearing distance.

"Enjoy your 'date' Master Dick," Alfred said.

"I will," I replied. I was about to catch up to Alexis when something came into mind. "Oh, and Alfred?"

"Yes, Master Dick?"

"Don't bother waiting up for us for dinner." I walked away from Alfred, that one scene relapsing in my head.

Alfred chuckled at Dick's words, recalling the memory as well. "Of course, Master Dick. I will not interrupt the two of you again."

"So where are we?" Alexis asked, looking up and around at the surrounding snow-covered buildings.

"We're here for the annual 3-day Winter Festival," I answered. Alexis stared at me confused, waiting for an answer. I grabbed her hand gently and pulled her through some alleyways. We walked up some fire escapes and made it to the roof of an apartment building. We sat down one of the ledges of the roof, our legs dangling from it.

People on the sides of the street watched in amazement at all the floats of snowmen and snow angels. On one of the floats a band was playing the song Frosty the Snowman. I heard a giggle escape from Alexis and I looked at her.

"What's so funny?"

"Remember when Freeze attacked Gotham Park on Independence Day?" Alexis asked me. I nodded and she continued. "Karie started to mock Freeze and his weird fish-bowl helmet. She started to call him Frosty the snowman and started to sing the song.

"Yeah, then I came in and saved the two of you from freezing into human popsicles," I added. Alexis rolled her eyes and knocked her shoulder against mine gently.

"Thanks," Alexis said.

We continued to watch the floats pass by one by one. Half way through the parade, I felt Alexis' head resting on my shoulder. A huge smile spread across my face and I leaned my head on hers too. I could smell the faint scent of cherries from Alexis. Once all the floats passed by, the sound of someone tapping a microphone was heard. Our attention was now on the well-dressed mid-aged man standing on a stage.

"Welcome everyone, to the annual Winter Festival!" Bruce exclaimed happily.

"I never knew Bruce sponsored the Winter Festival," Alexis spoke.

"He doesn't sponsor it, he founded it. Every year on the first day of the festival, he visits and gives the opening speech," I explained. "And this year, he specially made the first day of the festival today."

"That's so nice of him," Alexis smiled. "I think me being his night watch partner has made him a little softer."

"I don't think soft is the right word. More like fatherly," I said.

"I hope you all enjoy this Winter Festival!" Bruce waved, before walking off of the stage. He spotted us sitting on the roof and beckoned for us to come down. When we met Bruce down in the middle of the huge festival Karie stood by him, dressed a bit classy. "Happy birthday Alexis." Bruce wrapped his arms around her and smiled down at her. Breaking apart, Bruce gestured for Alfred. Alfred came along with three decorated boxes, all a different size and colour. "Come, let's all go inside and open your gifts."

We all sat in Bruce's private office on the highest floor. He wasn't here often, but the caretakers cleaned up the place now and then. Alfred had gotten Alexis a colourful toque. Karie had picked out a 4 rings, each engraved with a different word. Mom, dad, Karie and Alexis. She also bought her a roll of black sports tape.

"Hey, you could look good and make a handy pair of brass knuckles, just don't forget to put some tape on before you knock some guy out," Karie said casually.

"What is with you and getting double the outcome from something?" Alexis asked her. Karie shrugged it off and just told her to open Bruce's gift. Bruce had gotten her a black jacket, kinda like mine, except it had a built-in com-link and music player.

"Where is your gift Master Dick?" Alfred asked. I looked up at Alfred to see that he knew what my gift was. He had an amused smile on his face and was waiting patiently for my answer.

"It's outside, come on Alexis, we'll be back soon," I said. I sped out of the building with Alexis to the Gotham Park. _Why does Alfred have to embarrass me so much?_

"Alfred, would you care to explain what Dick's present to Alexis is?" Bruce asked, an eyebrow raised at his old friend.

Alfred began to chuckle, before he regained his composure. "Young love is always so amusing to watch."

* * *

><p>"What are we doing at the Gotham Park?" We'd been trudging through the slush on the sidewalk until I turned around. We stood beside the frozen fountain that held so many memories. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. <em>This is it.<em> "Dick?"

"I'm sorry," I finally responded. I tried to look at everywhere except Alexis and decided that the fountain was better when it was frozen.

"For what?" That was the one question that I had expected her to ask. I finally found the courage to look at her and couldn't help but notice how the cold air made her glow. I took her hands in mine slowly and found my voice.

"I'm sorry for hurting you. I know that I've confused you a lot, and that's because, I'm confused too." There was only silence. Alexis grasped on to my hands, softly telling me to continue. "I've never met anyone like you. Someone who would die for a person they barely even knew. Someone who would smile for people in the most drastic circumstances. Someone who always saw me as Dick, even if I was wearing a mask or sunglasses."

Alexis laughed softly before pointing out that the only people who knew my secret identity other than herself were Wally, Karie, Bruce and Alfred.

"As I was saying," I paused. Alexis had a small smile on her face, but nodded. "You are the only person who has ever been able to understand _me_. Although I haven't been able to do the same. I'm sorry about Zatanna, but I thought that since I would never be able to understand you, I would just move on." The small smile on Alexis face had disappeared completely and a frown was forming. "Your sister knocked some sense into me and I realized that even though I couldn't understand you as friends." I walked a bit closer to Alexis and was smiling down at her. She seemed to be beyond confused, and her eyes were glazed, threatening to spill tears. "I could get to know you better as something more."

I closed my eyes and my lips slowly met Alexis'. I could feel my heart skipping beats, and fireworks were going off in my stomach. My brain was still trying to process what was happening. _I was kissing Alexis. Her lips are on mine, mine on hers. _Alexis' warm lips kissed me back and I felt like I was going to explode from happiness. _And Alexis is kissing me back. _We stayed like that for a while when a small breeze blew at us. Alexis pulled away and rubbed her arms. I would've frowned, if it weren't for the fact that Alexis' cheeks were flushed. I took my jacket off and wrapped it around her. I kissed her forehead and said for the second time today, "Happy birthday, Dilan."

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><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	21. 12-feet Snowmen & Stake-Outs

**So after I found out on Young Justice Wikia that Zatanna gave Robin a birthday kiss, I was fuming for quite some time. But, I was also having writers block and it gave me the idea for a short little chapter about Alexis and Dick's blooming first relationship. _But_, I've also wanted to write about the episode Insecurity in Karie's/Kitsune's Pov. So here you have it, 2 different chapter ideas in one.**

* * *

><p><strong>Gotham City, Wayne Manor<strong>

**December 1ST 8:57 a.m.**

**Dick's Pov**

There was this odd feeling. Like there was something warm and soft on my lips. I forced my sleepy eyes open and the warmth left my lips. My eyes focused on the person, and I realized that it was Alexis. She smiled and spoke softly, "Happy birthday, Dick."

I smiled and sat up, my legs over the side of my bed. I looked up at Alexis and asked her something. "How did you know?"

"Wally, he told me about it when we went to Mt. Justice yesterday," Alexis answered.

I shook my head as a laugh escaped me. Note to self; if I ever tell Wally something about _me_ ever again, make sure he swears not to tell anyone. If Batman found out he would so ground me. "Thanks a lot Wally."

Alexis raised an eyebrow at me, crossing her arms. "What do you mean?"

"If Batman or Bruce ever found out that Wally told someone about my birthday, and that I was the one who told Wally, I am so gonna get grounded," I answered.

Alexis nodded, the ends of her lips curving up into a small smile. "Hurry up and get dressed, you have a long day ahead of you."

Before I could ask her what she meant, she walked out the door. I fell on my bed and stared at the ceiling, noticing how blue it was, instead of its usual golden-yellow. I got up and walked over to my window to see it snowing a bit. I scoffed and headed for my bathroom, the single thought in my head being 'What did Alexis plan for with this weather?'

* * *

><p>After a breakfast with everyone, Alexis quickly ran outside into the backyard of the manor and beckoned for me to follow.<p>

"Be careful," came Karie's voice. I turned to look at her with furrowed eyes. "Dilan has always had this thing she loves to do on snow days." With that Karie got up from her seat at the table and left the kitchen. Putting Karie's warnings aside, I quickly suited up and followed Alexis to the backyard.

Maybe I should've taken Karie's warnings more seriously. Just as I closed the doors, a pack of snow met my face. I wiped the snow off of my face and eyed Alexis.

"Got you!" she laughed. A smirk grew on my face.

"Care to tell me why you threw a chunk of snow?" I asked her.

"Every single time you can get me with a snow ball equals one more kiss I have to give you," Alexis started. "But, every time I land one on you, you have to make me a snowman."

"Sounds good to me—"

"As tall as those trees over there," she cut me off. I looked passed her to see that the trees stood around 12 feet in the air.

"You have to be kidding—" Another ball of snow smacked me square in the face.

"That's 2 already, which means 2, 12 feet snowmen for me!" Alexis exclaimed, jumping behind her barrier and making more snowballs.

I ran behind a tree and started to make a pile of snowballs of my own when I heard something smack the trunk of the tree. Knowing better than to turn and look at my opponent, I grabbed two of my snowballs and quickly threw them at Alexis. Alexis somersaulted away from them quickly and rolled over to her barrier. Taking this opportunity to my advantage, I started to hastily build a snow fort of my own. About half through the front barrier, I noticed a white blur and turned behind the tree. Thanks to years of experience, I noticed things that most people my age would never see. I picked up 3 snowballs and hurled them at Alexis, stalling for time to complete my fortress.

"You know you're just wasting time building a snow fort when you should be building me 3 snowmen!" I heard Alexis exclaim. I felt a something crash into my back, noting that Alexis had taken this opportunity to attack me from a different angle. I growled and scooped up the last of my 7 snowballs and jumped into the tree above. I settled myself on to a large, chunky branch before scanning the backyard for Alexis. So far, none of my throws landed on her which meant 0 kisses for me and 3 12-feet high snowmen for her. The things you do for the people you love.

A blur of red and brown fell in front of me and so did Alexis' face.

"Considering you have better aim than I do, I would've expected you to be ahead of me by now," Alexis said, clearly mocking me. I glared at Alexis only to have her giggle. I smiled and was about to throw a snowball at her when she quickly kissed me on the lips. "Maybe that will give you a bit of a boost."

Shocked from the sudden kiss, I sat frozen in place. When I finally remembered the situation I was in, I put on my usual devious grin and jumped down from the tree. Alexis will never know what hit her.

* * *

><p><strong>Alexis' Pov<strong>

_Where is he?_ I thought. I was walking around the backyard and couldn't find Dick anywhere. Maybe he ditched me because he didn't want to build 12 feet snowmen. I sighed. Maybe I should've pointed at the bare bushes in the manors backyard. After I gave Dick the surprise kiss, I quickly ran hoping that he would be more of a competition afterward. Now I can't seem to find him anywhere.

"Dick?" I called, glancing around to see if he was somewhere behind me. "Hello...?"

"Eek!" I shrieked when I felt something hit me from behind. I turned around only to be met with another one to the face. "Ah! Dick!"

Dick stood in front of me with a tennis ball machine, probably from somewhere in the manor. He had his signature smirk on his face and his eyes shone with confidence. "That's two kisses for me and 3 snowmen for you."

"That is so not fair," I pouted before throwing a snowball at him. He side-stepped and suddenly the machine fired at me again. I screamed as I dodged the 40 mph ball of snow. I heard Dick laugh at me which made me even more furious.

An idea came into mind and I quickly ran over to some of the trees. When I heard another fire from the snowball cannon I hid behind the tree and smiled. _Maybe this will shut that machine up._ I ran into the clearing, a snowball in one hand and a good size branch in the other. Snowball after snowball was shot at me, but after I realized that it was like dodging a bullet it was easy to evade them. Dick seemed surprised when I stood there in front of him. He threw a snowball at my leg while I threw one at his arm. Mine missed and fell apart on the snow-covered field, while Dick's managed to hit me enough to leave some snow behind.

A growling sound came from behind and I saw that the machine was turning to aim at me. _Perfect._ When the machine was just facing me I put on a scared look and froze as I tensed. I could feel Dick smiling victoriously behind me and I smirked. Just when the machine started to load up for a shot, I whipped the branch straight into the cannon. It started to make strange noises after that. The thing started to shake and hop a bit; I knew that I was in trouble. I ran behind Dick and cowered behind him as the machine went haywire and exploded.

Dick staggered back which caused me to lose balance as well, sending us both into the new pile of snow and various metals. I scrambled out from under the cold blanket of snow and sat up looking around for Dick. Something shot up to my left and Dick appeared, a piece of wiring caught in his messy black locks.

We stared at each other, when the both of us bursted out into laughing. This was definitely one of the most eventful snowball fights I've ever had.

"Here, you've got something in your hair." I scooted over beside him and took red wire out of his hair, completely unaware by the fact that our faces were only inches apart. "There." I examined Dick to see if he had any more wires on him, and realized that I must've looked much worse. "Where did my toque go?"

Suddenly the white and black toque was placed gently on my head. "Found it."

"Thanks," I said, peaking my eyes out from under the hat. "Now about those 3 snowmen..."

"Right, you'll help me build them won't you?" Dick asked. His facial expression was filled with pleading but amusement would always be something in it.

"Of course," I said. "Since we both hit each other 3 times, after we finish a snowman you get a kiss."

"Let's get to building," Dick said hastily. I laughed and began to help roll a ball of snow.

* * *

><p><strong>*~Chapter Change~*<strong>

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><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**December 5TH 5:02 p.m.**

**Kitsune's Pov**

I walked through the zeta-tube, an annoyed expression plastered on my face. Alexis had told me about how Dick given her first kiss on her birthday and how they decided to try the boyfriend and girlfriend thing. Assuming that Alfred had already knew since he would always look at Dick with that 'Ah, young love' look. I was happy and proud of the both of them though. Dick finally clearing his head, and Alexis finally truly happy and safe. Now, the annoyed expression on my face came from the two of them being all sweet and lovey-dovey when they were around each other. I decided to get some fresh air and headed to the cave.

"Kitsune, what a surprise. Batman send you here?" Green Arrow asked. I raised my eyebrows at G.A and only nodded in confirmation.

"Looks like Batman's got some new members in the Batman family." Green stepped out-of-the-way to reveal a red-haired boy standing behind him. "I've never seen you before."

"And I've never met you before, probably why you've never seen me," I said, honestly annoyed by this strangers personality.

"Be nice Roy, after all she is your new teammate," Green Arrow reprimanded.

"Teammate?" I asked. Green Arrow nodded and sent me a friendly smile, but it was more to reassure me that I could trust him. "Wait, don't tell me you're Speedy?"

"It's _Red Arrow_," he stated,eyes narrowing behind that domino mask.

I glared at him. "Oh, that's so original." He let out a low growl and I smirked. "Speedy." I could've sworn that Red was going to jump at me, but Wally ran into the room followed by Zatanna, M'gann, Connor and Aqualad.

"Roy, hey nice to see ya buddy!" Wally exclaimed. His eyes looked up at his old friend with smiling eyes that shone. A click went off in my head and I realized that Wally looked up to Speedy here as a role model.

"Oh, so you have a fan," I said, amused at the blood rushing through his face.

"Recognized Artemis B07." Artemis materialized at the zeta-tube hands on her hips.

"Artemis, just in time. Look who's agreed to join the team," Arrow cut in, trying to stop another heated argument between the two of us.

"Finally!" Wally exclaimed.

Artemis looked unamused, in fact it was like something was bothering her. "Sure, team's needed a real archer."

Yep, something was definitely bothering her.

"Okay people listen up, the Dynamic Duo and Valkyrie are doing their thing in Gotham, but Batman gave me a heads up," Green Arrow said. He walked up to holographic-tech and an image of Sportsmaster appeared. "Sportsmaster's been spotted leaving the Louis Armstrong International Airport."

"In full costume? Nerdy," Zatanna commented.

"In street clothes," Green Arrow corrected. " Find out what he's up to."

"All of us? Sounds like overkill for a shadow job," Connor pointed out.

"Thought the sidekicks**-**Ex-sidekicks could suit up for this one," Green said.

"Good stake outs make me crazy," Connor said.

"We could use the night off," M'gann suggested.

"Since the Dynamic Duo and Valkyrie are on their on case, I came here for a night out. Leaving me in the cave is not how I want to spend it," I said, all eyes on me. "I'm coming too."

There were no objections, probably because no one knew what to say.

"I want in," came Artemis' voice. "With M'gann and Robin out, no one has more experience piloting the bio-ship." Her voice was stone cold along with her stare.

"Artemis? Are you sure?" Green Arrow asked.

"Absolutely," Artemis said, her voice dropping to a deadly low.

* * *

><p><strong>Orleans Parish<strong>

**December 5TH 9:27 p.m.**

**Kitsune's Pov**

"Target's heading North," came Speedy's—I mean Red's voice. Why is it so hard for me to remember? "Pursuit, but maintain at a discreet distance. That goes double for you Artemis. Sportsmaster's proven that he can spot Miss Martian's camouflage when in motion."

I rolled my eyes at his distrust in Artemis and went with the plan. Red was pursuing him by water on a jet ski, Aqualad tailing him underwater, Kid with his motorbike along the local highway, Artemis in the bio-ship and me, well I was taking a more different approach.

For the first time in the past few months, I always thought that this ability was one of the most useless. That lead to never needing to use it. Now that I'm following my prey, it's pretty handy. I climbed up one of the trees along side the highway Kid was on and was jumping from branch to branch, barely keeping up with Sportsmaster.

Sportsmaster turned right in my direction and I stopped, resting quietly on a large branch. My eyes shone yellow from turning into my animal form. If he saw me, he might have just thought that I was a large owl sitting on the tree. Ah, the beauty of natural camouflage. He stood in front of the railroad tracks, glancing from his watch from time to time. I heard Artemis and voices from not so far away and listened.

"Hey sis. Long time no reveal who you friends who you really are to all your friends."

My eyes widened. What did this person mean by that? Obviously she knew Artemis, but what I couldn't decipher was if any of this was just mind games. I heard the distinctive clash of swords and Artemis' bow.

"Nice, Canary teach you that?" So Artemis' so called 'sister' knows about Black Canary as our training instructor? I heard the familiar sound of a bow being drawn. "Bet you'll run out of arrows before I run out of swords. Unless you plan on breaking out the pointy one's to use against your own sister."

"Why shouldn't I? You're working with Sportsmaster!" Artemis argued back. Something else sounded and I knew that Arrow had moved from his place and drawn his bow. I mentally groaned. This is just what Sportsmaster wants. He's using that girl as a distraction! If only I weren't so close to Sportsmaster I could tell them through the com-link.

"Not my choice! Not my call!" the girl shouted.

"Then whose call is it?" Artemis asked her.

"Sorry, just because I know your secrets, doesn't mean I'll tell you mine," the girl said, the slyness in her voice returning.

An arrow was fired and I knew that Red had made his move. _Why are you falling for this simple distraction?_

"Why Arrow. If you wanted another date you only had to ask," Artemis' sister said.

"You two are dating?" Artemis exclaimed.

"What? No," Red scoffed at the idea.

"Why deny the attraction," the girl said. "After all Arrow, you're here."

"I read you keep'em busy," Sportsmaster said.

My eyes were trained on Sportsmaster's. There was no way I was going to let him escape when he was right in front of me. Batman would so make me train and lecture me on and on.

The sound of a train caused the both of us to look to our left. Sure enough, the huge metal machine ran right past us. One of the cargo doors suddenly opened and someone threw a briefcase out of it. Sportsmaster caught it and quickly ran to his boat.

"Aqualad, Sportsmaster's planning on taking a leave, continue to tail him," I spoke through the com-link.

"Understood," Aqualad confirmed.

I ran through the trees, keeping up with Sportsmaster. I grabbed a tracer that Batman had given to me and dropped on to the forest floor. I hid in the darkness, and when I found an opening I threw the tracer on to the side of his boat. Arrow came up beside him, only to receive a few explosives at in his face.

"Red!" I screamed. I ran out into the open and threw a few projectiles at Sportsmaster. He caught them with easy and crunched them in his fist.

"Looks like we got another member in the Bat family," Sportsmaster joked.

I gritted my teeth as he threw some other tracer on his engine into the water and a few more of those explosives. The water erupted upwards like a fountain and Sportsmaster hurried away. Something else shot up from the water; it was Red Arrow.

"Aqualad!" he shouted. Aqualad appeared behind him and began to contact the rest of the team.

"Aqualad, I'll go back up Kid and Artemis," I said.

"Alright, we'll meet you there," he answered back. The line was cut and I ran towards the direction of the sound. There was a black-haired girl with a white and red mask fighting with Artemis and Kid. She sent Kid a swift kick in the gut, only angering Artemis. When she kicked Artemis back I jumped in and landed a cut on her shoulder.

"So you were the one causing the huge fuss," I said. The girl (who must've been Artemis' sister) and I were circling each other, our sai's raised.

"You must be one of the new girls on that kiddie team of yours," she spoke. Scoffing, she continued. "Your sai's look a little broken."

"My sai's are just fine!" I yelled. She was toying with me, and I knew that behind that mask of her's she was smiling at me.

"A little ball of fire aren't you, well then maybe I'll just have to put you out," she said.

She ran at me with her one sai, thanks to Canary's and Batman's training, it was easy to block. Not missing a beat, she swung at my ribs, but I met her fist with the hilt of my sai.

"Not bad," she complemented. "But you still need some work on your technique." She kicked my thigh, sending me to the ground. I was about to retaliate and swing a sai at her, but she was gone.

I groaned and got up from the ground and rubbed my thigh. She had some kick. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah we're fine, are you?" Artemis asked, genuinely concerned.

"Don't worry about it, now come on, we're suppose to meet up with the guys," I said.

"Cheshire's heading North," Artemis said, shaking the G.P.S in her hand. A small green dot on the screen was moving North quickly.

"Sportsmaster was heading South, like this mission," Red snapped. Why did he have to be so grouchy?

"Sportsmaster's got a hold on some type of anti-shade case," I said.

"We needed to learn what it contained," Aqualad said repeating the goal of this stake out. "If only you had stayed in the bio-ship—"

"I saw Cheshire sneaking up behind him," Artemis interrupted, pointing a finger at Red Arrow.

"It was distraction, Cheshire was luring the 3 of you away from Sportsmaster. Sportsmaster got a hold of the anti-shade case and that was when he escaped," I spoke up, rubbing two fingers on my temple. "Forget about her for now. I got a tracker on Sportsmaster's boat, will continue with the original plan of this mission." I tossed Aqualad my G.P.S and walked towards the bio-ship.

"Oh and if this plan is going to go anywhere, we have to start getting along," I glared at Red, before continuing to walk.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**December 6TH 3:21 a.m.**

**Kitsune's Pov**

"Let me be clear," Aqualad spoke. "We failed. Though the Injustice League is locked up, their allies still scheme. And we learned nothing of their plans."

"Gee, I wonder why?" Red Arrow said coldly, crossing his arms and glaring at Artemis.

Our whole mission was a bust. All the enemies escaped, we learned nothing about what Sportsmaster had in that briefcase and were left empty-handed.

"Hey, who found out Sportsmaster was working for Brain, Klarion and Ivo?" Artemis asked, defending herself.

"Great info, except Ivo's been in Belle Rev the whole time," Red replied, advancing to her. "And the guards just checked, it's the real Ivo, not a robot."

"You know I'm getting pretty tired of you dumping on her," Kid said, stepping in front of Artemis as if he was protecting her.

Arrow raised his hand. Between his thumb and his index finger was the tracker that Artemis had put on Cheshire.

"Her tracer, so? Cheshire ditched it," Kid said.

"No, Artemis ditched that," Arrow said jerking a thumb at the other tracer in Aqualad's hand. "To send us on wild goose chase with this one on Cheshire." Arrow raised his other hand again glaring at the circular tracer.

_Why would Artemis ever do something like that? _Is it because of her bad history with her sister? All eyes were trained on Artemis, waiting for her to say something.

"Artemis," Kid spoke unexpectedly. "Are you that freaked out about Red Arrow joining the team that you had to prove yourself by bringing down the bad guys solo? **Please** tell me I'm wrong."

Artemis was about to speak, but all that came out was a strangled sound. She dropped her head in defeat.

"Well, what you proved is that you're insecure and selfish," Kid said, his voice never sounding so serious. There was also something else in there, I think it was disbelief. Maybe that was just me. He tossed one of Cheshire's sai's at Artemis' feet, the weapon rattling from the contact. "Keep the sai, this is the right souvenir for this mission." He swiped the tracer that was put on Cheshire from Arrow's hand and stormed off to his souvenir room.

"So how will you betray us next time?" Arrow immediately snapped.

"Red!" I yelled. Yes, I agree with Kid and Red's words, but Artemis was one of my only friends. There was no way I would just stand there and listen to him constantly blaming her. I know how that feels, and no one else should.

"Enough!" Aqualad exclaimed, silencing everyone. "If making a mistake is a betrayal, then all of us are traitors. I must report this to Batman. The rest of you get some sleep."

I began to follow Aqualad to go speak with Batman when Red's voice creeped up to my ear's.

"You're not who you say you are. This isn't over. Not by a long shot."

I whipped my head to see him walk away, while Artemis had her head down again. I walked up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. Her head shot up, but she relaxed when she realized that it was just me. "We need to talk. Come on, I'll make us some hot chocolate."

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><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	22. Haly's Circus

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**December 6TH 3:26 a.m.**

**Third Person's Pov**

The newest member of the team walked into the same room as Aqualad, a scowl plastered on his face. The holographic blue screen in the air disappeared from their sight.

"Something wrong?" Aqualad asked his long time friend.

"I don't trust any of them," Red Arrow spat instantly.

"Why is that?" Aqualad asked this time.

"Artemis sent us on a wild goose chase, Miss Martian is from another planet, Superboy is a secret clone of Superman from Cadmus and Kitsune is a bit of an animal," Red Arrow deadpanned.

"Roy, I am from an underwater kingdom, what makes any of them so different from myself?" Aqualad inquired.

Red growled, "There is a mole on this team, Aqualad. If anyone of them hurts my friends, I'll be the first one to see to them." The previous sidekick Speedy, turned to face the hallway that he had walked down not to long ago. Not meeting Aqualad's eyes, he spoke one last time.

"Oh, and if that animal has a sister that's just like her, the next time she's on a mission, I'll gladly tag along."

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><p><strong>Bruges, Haly International Traveling Circus<strong>

**December 22 8:08 p.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

"Madames et monsieurs, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Haly International Traveling Circus!" Jack Haly, the ring master boomed. "Where the world of deciphering is your oyster." Haly turned and raised his staff at one of the trapeze platforms hidden in the shadows. A spotlight turned on and was running up the pole dramatically. "The Daring Dangers!"

It's been 4 years since I've stood at the top of the trapeze like this; the cheering of the fans ringing through my ears, the spotlight burning on me and lastly, performing in Haly's Circus. But here I was, standing there waving at the large crowd about to put on another show. Sweat ran down my forehead, but I ignored it and jumped off the platform, hands securely on the bar.

"Dan Danger," Haly said, introducing my covert name. I front-flipped through the air to the other bar where Miss M had just flipped off too. I grabbed on to the bar and a breath escaped me. _I made it._ I could barely hear Haly introduce Miss M's covert name over the excited fans, as I landed on the other platform. "Dawn Danger."

"Diane Danger, Dane Danger, Dean Danger and Danielle Danger!" Haly exclaimed, finishing introducing the rest of us undercover.

Diane (Artemis) and Dane (Red Arrow) were standing down below in the ring with arrows that weren't dangerous at all unless glitter and confetti could hurt. Dean (Superboy) was the strong man, juggling huge barrels. Danielle (Valkyrie) was on the silk ropes to the left of the trapeze.

Returning my focus on to the performance, I securely gripped the bar before I jumped off again. Diane and Dane released their arrows, glitter and confetti streaming out from behind them. Danielle was ready to strike her pose around 30 feet in the air. Dean threw up 2 barrels in the air; Dawn and I flew through the barrels. The scene must've been pretty amazing if the crowd bursted into screaming and cheering.

"You will never see another trapeze act like this folks, and all without a net," Haly spoke.

Dawn's arms were already stretched out for me, waiting to catch me. I let go of the bar, thrusting myself to reach Dawn. Then the unthinkable happened, I didn't make it. Plummeting to the rock hard ground of the ring, I could hear Valkyrie's worried voice in my head screaming my name. There was no way I was going to miss the next day.

_"Don't blow our cover!" _I ordered, turning to face everything below.

_"Is saving your life okay?" _Dean threw a green barrel at me. I held on to the barrel as it flew up from the strength of the throw. I looked up and reached out for Dawn's hand. My hand swayed to the right missing her hand. Dawn's eyes glowed a bright green and my hand suddenly met with hers.

_"Didn't I just say not to blow our cover?" _I asked, my feet landing softly on the platform.

_"Don't worry, the crowd couldn't see me all the way up here," _Miss M said, waving to the crowd. _"Besides, I've been using it the whole time. I'm not the acrobat you are."_

_"Yeah neither am I right now. I think I caught that 24 hour bug that's been going around," _I told Miss M. I sighed. "But, the show must go on."

~A While Back~

"Advance weapons tech has been stolen from manufacturing sites around Europe. Each coincides with the stops of the Haly's Circus," I spoke, staring up at the large map in front of me. "Batman's sending us on a covert to catch the thieves."

"This clown cart got room for one more?" Red Arrow asked, towering behind me.

I turned to face. "Uh, we-we got this covered."

Red put his hand on my shoulder, and knelt a little to speak in my ear. "You've got this mission covered, but who's covering the 3 frequent mole suspects you're bringing along. Besides, I've got to see for myself if the new girl is just as bad as her sister."

~Present~

"Put your hands together for, The Daring Dangers!" Haly said, the crowd bursting into applaud.

The six of us stood down on the ground of the ring, waving at our fans.

_"Didn't think you would make it," _Miss M said, her eyes looking into mine concerned.

_"Yeah, me too,"_ I told her, feeling the sweat beading down my face. _"I'll be back stage if you need me."_

We all turned and head for the red curtains outside of the ring. An arm looped around my waist, trying to support my weight. I looked to my right to see Danielle, a look of concern written all over her face. I managed a smile, grateful for her support.

* * *

><p><strong>Valkyrie's Pov<strong>

_"If Inter Pol is already on the case, why are we bothering?" _Superboy asked through Miss M's telepathic link.

_"Because Batman said so, why you have something better to do?" _Robin asked Superboy, glaring at him from across the rooftop. Valkyrie sent me a disappointed frown, but I ignored it, thinking back to the mission.

_"How do we know the thieves will hit here?"_ Artemis questioned.

_"There are more obvious targets,"_ Red Arrow added to her question.

_"I already got those places covered. I've analyzed the tech that's been stolen and the patterns suggest this is the place,"_ Robin answered. I eyed him out of the corner of my eye, and saw that he was breaking into a sweat.

_"How are you feeling?" _Miss M asked.

_"Lousy actually, but I'll manage,"_ Robin replied, sending Miss M an assuring smile.

_"Contact, North East squadron," _Superboy's voice alerted.

_"Keep an open mind, and move in!"_ Robin ordered, jumping from the building. We all met up around a the corner from the North East squadron. Hearing Superboy land beside us, I asked him if he saw were the target went. In sync, Superboy and I scanned the building for heat signatures.

_"The warehouse,"_ we stated.

_"Move out."_

This was too easy. The six of us had made it up behind the thief without any notice. He was too focused on his objective and held some type of advanced tech in his hand. Was this guy the thief?

"Ha ha ha, caught red-handed," Robin laughed, making the thief aware of our presence.

"Acrobatics won't get you out of this," Artemis said, her bow and arrow raised.

Unexpectedly, the thief took out a glowing baton of some sort and blew the red-hot part at us. We scattered, dodging the fire.

"Those crates are full of live ammo, move!" Red warned. Even though we ran, we weren't fast enough to escape the explosion of the gunpowder.

Every window in the warehouse shattered, black clouds of smoke spilling out of them. You could say we were all lucky though, the explosion sent two metal doors at us, trapping us from the fire. Superboy pushed them off with easy, and quickly ran a few metres ahead of us.

"That guy is dead meat," Superboy growled.

"Superboy, no!" Robin exclaimed. Superboy turned to face Robin, gritting his teeth.

"He's getting away!"

"And that's more important than Miss M? The fire's killing her!" Robin snapped at Superboy. A look of realization dawned on Superboy's face, when he saw how broken Miss Martian looked between Artemis and I.

"R-right," he agreed. He walked up to Artemis and I, swooping her into his arms with ease. He quickly looked around for an exit, before running.

"Artemis, Red, you guys find the thief! Valkyrie, you and I will—" Robin fell to the ground, worrying me even more about his condition. The three of us helped him up, his arm over my shoulder, while Red and Artemis watched from behind.

"Right, because catching him is more important than you," I commented, sending him a small smile. We left the building, this stake out a bust, but we still had a while to complete the mission.

* * *

><p><strong>Bruges, Haly International Traveling Circus<strong>

**December 23RD 5:17 p.m.**

**Danielle's Pov**

We watched as Haly argued with the Baronade guy from Interpol again, shouting that none of his troops are responsible, and how all of us were in bed last night.

_"We weren't," _Miss M said. _"And if he's lying about us..."_

From the corner of my eye, I noticed that Dick's head fell just a bit. I already knew that Batman had never sent us on this mission. It was just something that Dick had to do, after all this place was his home before. This is where his parents... If this circus was gone, so would the last bit of his parents. Dick wouldn't be Dick anymore if that ever happened.

_"So 2 thieves, right?" _Artemis asked. We all sat in our small trailer room, discussing the robberies of the tech. _"The Fire Breather and one of the acrobats."_

_"Dressed in identical clothes," _Miss M added.

_"Maybe not just 2, here's the Midriff security footage,"_ Robin said, his eyes fixed on the video. A man in street clothes was pulling open the steel bars of a window. _"Now Paris."_ This time, there was another man in street clothes walking on the wires of electricity cables.

_"So the strong man and the clown too," _Red Arrow confirmed. _"If the entire circus is involved, Haly himself may be the mastermind."_

_"You don't know that,"_ Robin quickly replied, before shutting off the footage.

_"It would explain the lies,"_ Miss M pointed out.

A wave of heat rushed through Robin, as he jumped up from his seat. "I told you to keep an open mind!"

He stormed out of the trailer room, leaving everyone confused by his sudden outburst. I looked at everyone, before sighing and following after Robin.

I grabbed my winter jacket and slipped on some boots before jumping out of the trailer. A gust of cold air blew against my cheek. I looked up at the sky to see that it was softly snowing. _Mysterious._ It was amazing how much this weather really matched Robin. But to every snow day, is a sunny day of playing in the snow, building 12 feet snowmen. I smiled at the memory, before following the familiar warmth of the Boy Wonder.

I spotted Robin staring at a poster on one of the trailer carts. He suddenly raised his hand pressing on the com-link in his ear. I followed him carefully, catching a glimpse of the poster he must've been staring at. The Flying Graysons...

"I left you behind because you knew my back story, I didn't want my best pal questioning my objectivity," Robin said.

So he's talking to Wally. It didn't look like he was still talking to him, so I walked up beside him, revealing my presence. "So why did you let me come along?"

He didn't seem startled by my presence, but he seemed a bit unsure about how to answer my question.

"Because," he started. He sighed his gaze from the snow-covered ground, fixed on to me. I looked into his eyes to see a pain that no one would ever understand. "I knew that I would need you by my side."

My cheeks warmed at his words. "This circus isn't stopping here," I said as I wrapped my arms around him, resting my head against his chest. "We'll prove it."

I felt him wrap his arms around me, his head resting on my shoulder. "Thanks, Alexis."

"Come on, we've got a show to put on tonight," I smiled, grabbing his hand and leading him back to our trailer.

* * *

><p>I wiped the sweat off of my face with a towel Diane had just handed me. I glanced at her, shooting her a thankful look.<p>

"Alright people, pack it up! The train leaves in 2 hours!" Haly shouted.

Everyone wasted no time packing their belongings and throwing them into the train, after all it wouldn't be so great to be left behind. We all sat in our small room on the train, discussing what info we could land.

"You look better," I commented, examining Dan to see that his body temperature had decreased.

"I feel better too," he added. He glanced at Miss M, who was laying down on one of the benches, a blanket draped over her. "Sorry Miss—Dawn. Hope you didn't catch it from me."

Miss Martian's body temperature had suddenly increased a moment ago, which would explain the flu. Which was odd since she was a martian. I looked at Miss Martian with curious eyes and asked, "When did you first start feeling sick? I felt your body temperature go up just a while ago..."

"Just before we boarded the train, it came on so suddenly," Dawn explained.

"Same with me, I remember Rey rubbing my head for good luck just before we went on for our first show," Dan said.

"Rey? That guy touched her before we boarded. That guy must be a walking pastry dish," Dean said.

"Yeah maybe," Dan agreed, before walking out of the room suddenly. "Uh, Jack, when did Ray first start working for you."

"Just at the start of the European tour, that man's down with the same flu as all of them," Haly answered.

"We'll go check on him, it's the friendly thing to do after all," I said, beaming a fake smile at Haly.

"Be my guest, just make sure you guys get enough sleep," Haly said.

"Bed's empty and the lights are off," I said, standing in front of Rey's worn out mattress.

"Does this circus have an elephant I don't know about?" Dane asked, staring at a crate labelled 'Elephant Food'.

"Not on foreign tours," Dan answered.

"Guys, I found Rey," Diane said, pulling out a mask from under the mattress.

"Split up, and search the whole train!" Dan ordered immediately, storming out of the room.

After a while of running through each trailer cart, Dean alerted us that he found Rey. I met up with the rest of the group on our way to the Dining Cart.

"That's no clown, it's the Parasite, the man who once stole Superman's powers!" Dan exclaimed. "He steals people's power through physical contact, everyone stay back!"

I let my powers wash over me, this warmth rushing through my head. "I got this, just keep him distracted."

I stepped forward on the moving roof of the train towards Parasite, only to be stopped by someone's arm. I stared at Dan confusingly, but he sent me a mixed message. It clearly meant 'stay back' but I think he was trying to tell me something else too.

"As if you kids are who you say you are. I took Dawn Dangers or whatever her name is powers, hoping to receive her trapeze skills," Parasite scoffed. "I was surprised when I felt Martian Manhunter's telekinesis. But of course, I only want the main dish." Parasite used the telekinesis to his advantage and forced Superboy at him. "That's that full Kryptonian power that I love."

After taking away Superboy's powers, Parasite fled the train. Dan jumped at Parasite's box that he was taking with him, using it for as momentum to jump at him, Parasite knocking him off with ease, sending Dan flying past the train. I jumped quickly for his hand, securely grabbing hold of it. Dawn, Dane, and Diane helped me pull him back up, Dan falling into me. I blushed at the contact, but quickly remained focused on the task at hand.

We sat in our room, all in our alter ego's suits. "So what did you manage to salvage?"

Robin smirked at me, holding up a flash drive. "It's not much."

After plugging it into his glove, some sort of data appeared. My eyes scanned over it; widening in shock. "No way."

"Parasite's trying to build a black hole," Robin concluded.

* * *

><p><strong>Geneva<strong>

**December 24TH 12:37 a.m.**

"We need to lure him away so we can safely disengage—" Robin whispered when Superboy suddenly went all berserk. He tore through the wall that separated us between Parasite and was suddenly flying at Parasite—again.

"What do you think?" Miss Martian asked.

"Big risk to take on a theory," Red Arrow said.

"Do it. Go," Robin commanded.

Miss Martian began to toy around with Parasite talking about some random topics. When Miss Martian was close enough, she leg-sweeped him, sending him to the ground. When he got up, Red shot an arrow at him, foam dispersing from the arrow-head.

"You think foam can stop me?" Parasite asked. "Combined Martian Manhunter and Superman powers here."

"But can any of those powers free you, before I sabotage your death thingy?" Robin asked.

"This one does," Parasite said, shooting lasers out of his eyes. Robin jumped out-of-the-way, as I jumped to his spot. I held my hands up, a shield forming.

"Sorry, but I'm trying to keep this lab clean," I told him. The lasers faded once they made contact with my telekinetic shield. Thanks to all the practice and mom's book, this psychic and telekinesis thing has been really easy. "Parasites are definitely unacceptable."

His eyes darted behind him, shooting lasers at Artemis. Artemis jumped out-of-the-way in time, while releasing her arrow. It landed on Parasite dead on. The hissing of air came from the arrow-head, and the chemical reaction soon caused the foam to explode. I put a shield around the explosion preventing anyone to get hit by it. When I saw Red Arrow falling, I put the shield down, creating a small platform to catch him. I noticed some fire being blown in my direction and quickly ran out-of-the-way. I heard a groan from somewhere in the lab. _Oops._ I think I might've dropped Red.

"Pretty smart, igniting a fire around me," Parasite complemented. "But fire can't hurt me."

"Unless you make a meal of my powers and get my weaknesses as a side dish," Miss Martian said, out-smarting Parasite.

I turned to hear the machine Parasite was plaining to destroy Geneva with shut down. Robin stood in front of the control panel, when the Interpol guys walked in.

"We'll take it from here," Baronade said. His two assistants extinguished the fire surrounding Parasite, allowing Baron to place an inhibitor collar around his neck. "Thanks for the tip, glad to prep the collar just in case."

"Glad to be of service," Robin smiled, one of the few smiles I've seen during this mission.

While I walked up to Red Arrow and Artemis with Robin, Miss M had one of Superboy's arm slung over her shoulder.

"I'm sorry I doubted anyone. There is no mole," Red smiled. He turned to look at me, a look of anger on his face. "And next time, try not to drop me."

"Sorry, but you weren't the one who almost got burned to ashes," I snapped at him teasingly. A smile formed on his face again, in fact, everyone had a smile on their face.

"You are just like your sister," Red said, shaking his head.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Anyways, I just realized I'm almost done this story :(. No worries though, I already have a sequel in mind :)<strong>

**Review, alert, fav!**


	23. Better Off Gone

**I was so surprised by the amount of people who added this fanfic to their alert or fav story list. Thank you guys! Alerts and favs are great, but reviews really fuel a writer.**

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><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**December 24 11:42 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

I stood in the usual discussion room of the cave, waiting patiently. The envelope in my hand rustled as I continued to fidget with it. The sound of heels clicking down the hall made me turn.

"Something you wanted to talk to me about?" Black Canary asked me. She was clad in red and white, fit for the festive season.

I took a shaky breath, remembering the letter I wrote a while after the failed training exercise. I looked down at the neat white envelope, my name neatly printed on it. I looked back up at Black Canary, feeling a bit more confident. Smiling, I said, "Sorry for asking you to come here on Christmas Eve."

"It's fine," Black Canary immediately replied. Hers eyes fell on the envelope then back at me. She pointed at it, looking at me with confused eyes.

"After the failed training exercise went wrong, and we had a private talk with you I wrote this letter," I began, waving the letter in front of me. "I want you to keep it, for the time being." I handed Canary the white envelope, Canary looking at it uncertainly.

"What's it about?" she asked, a seriousness in her voice.

"If I ever die or disappear, open the envelope and read the letter to everyone," I told her, before seeing Batman staring at the two of us. "I have to go. And Black Canary?"

"Yes?" she asked, somewhat still shocked from my words.

I wrapped my arms around her, embracing her in a hug. "Thank you, and merry Christmas."

I felt Canary wrap her arms around me, one hand running down my back soothingly. It's been a long time since I've ever felt this way; a mother's touch. "Merry Christmas, Alexis."

* * *

><p>Batman and I stood in one of the many abandoned rooms of the cave. After leaving Black Canary with my last words, Batman had led me into this room with oddly enough, a grand piano in it.<p>

"When was that—" I started.

"Wonder Woman asked me to put one in the cave while the Justice League held our operations here," Batman answered quickly. "She forgot to take it with her when we moved bases."

I raised an eyebrow at Batman. When he wanted to get to the point of something, he usually cut people off. "Well, what did you want to talk about if you brought me out of Superboy's hearing range?"

Batman stared at me for a while. I wish he wasn't wearing that domino mask right now, then I could've read his eyes. He mouth opened, not a sound coming out. He took a quick breath, finding his voice. "I need you to go undercover and find out what the Light is up too."

My eyes widened, and I couldn't help but stop breathing for a few seconds. Go undercover, sure. For the Light? That's like giving them the best present ever; Doomsday. "Go on."

"We haven't been making any progress so far in trying to figure what the Light is up to, I figured the only way to do that is for someone to get in and get close," Batman explained. "You are the perfect one for this mission."

"And why is that?" I asked, a bit of anger thrown into my words. I understood what Batman meant; figure out their plans the way we do best. Recon, then stake out.

"The Light is after you and your family, if you knew all of their secrets, then you would have the advantage when you have to face them," Batman answered.

"Keep you friends close, and your enemies closer, huh?" I muttered. I understood Batman now. This way, I could help put an end to the Light's schemes and protect me and my family from them. I looked at Batman, there was still something off about him. "There's more isn't there?"

"The next time you face any member of the Light, your job is to get them to take you with them," Batman spoke seriously.

I thought about my first solo mission. The pros were something that I wouldn't mind, but the cons... I'd be stripped away of everyone. Karie, Bruce, Alfred, the team, Dick... My fists balled up, sweat already forming in them. _This is for the good of everyone_, I thought. _I'm not a ticking time bomb._ I nodded my head, agreeing to the terms of this mission.

"I'm sorry to have to dump this on you today," Batman apologized. He turned, his cape flowing behind him. "Let's go home. Alfred, Karie, and Dick are waiting for us."

I ran up to Batman's side and we walked to the zeta-tube quietly.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**December 26TH 2:36 p.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

After our short-lived first _real_ Christmas with Bruce, Alfred and Dick, Bruce wasted no time telling us to train on our mother's hand-me-down powers.

"If you use that half of your powers to weaken your opponent, you can use your Death Glares to finish them off," Black Canary explained. "Of course, you will have to your persuasive voice to deal with them."

I nodded, understanding the differences between my sister's and my abilities. It's ironic though, how much our powers resemble who we are and how we lived. For Karie, she would give everyone the cold shoulder, and if they wouldn't leave her alone her glare would scare them right off. She also had the knack for jumping over fences when we got chased by some thugs. Not to mention climbing up in trees to get some kids kite down for them. Karie's amazing hearing reminds me of the time we were being stalked by a stranger. For about 15 minutes, that guy had followed us. When she told me to make a break for it, I ran with her through our secret pathways all the way home. The guy probably got lost in the maze of crossroads. When I asked her how she knew, she simply told me that she heard the same footsteps.

For me, I loved to sing. My mom was most definitely my inspiration. She would always sing lullabies to me before bed. I never thought that I'd be using my voice to knock someone out cold. I was very flexible growing up, and liked to jump off from just about anything. The couch, the swings, especially out of trees. I would've never imagined being able to defend myself like that though. The extra powers that I got was a heat sensor. What I never told Karie was that when that guy was stalking us, I knew he was tailing us too. Not because of his footsteps, but because his presence was always there. What I'm also surprised but thankful for, is the fact that our powers only work when we go into 'Animal Mode' as Karie puts it.

"Do you have the book?" Canary asked.

"Yeah, right here," Karie answered, placing the book in Canary's hands.

"I'll go get M'gann, you two stay here and practice in your free time," Black Canary said.

M'gann came flying back into the training room, our book in her hands. "Black Canary told me you guys need a teacher?" We smiled and nodded, telling M'gann how Batman told us to work on our psychic powers. "First things first, what kind of psychic are you? See the future psychic, telekinesis psychic, or Martian level psychic?"

"Telekinetic," Karie and I answered in sync.

"Where did you stop at?" M'gann asked, opening the old book, flipping through the pages.

"Soul Clone, or that's what mom called it. Page 152," I told her.

"To separate your soul from your body, and to re-emerge as a clone out of thin air; a hallucination. The higher skilled telekinesis are able to re-emerge as a full solid clone, for a long period of time. The only way to re-connect the body with the soul, is to find your body and to feel your heart beating in it. If the body is moved else where, the farther apart you are from it may cause you to stay in soul-form permanently," M'gann read aloud. "Sounds a hard, but I can't even use this skill being a different type of psychic and all."

"It's worth a shot," Karie said. "I mean, our must've put it in there for a reason."

"I'll go first then," I volunteered. "What do I have to do?"

"It says to feel yourself in a separate body. You must be completely focused. You will know that you are separating your soul from your body, if you begin to glow; an aura surrounding you," M'gann read, before looking up from the book.

I nodded, taking deep breaths. The only thoughts coursing through my head were 'Separate the soul from the body. Focus.' I felt myself grasp on to something, then pulling at it. It took a while before I could really pull it out. I couldn't feel the cold draft in the cave anymore. This alarmed me, opening my eyes. I looked at Karie, then M'gann. They seemed shocked. I looked at my hands and almost screamed when I could see through them. Realization dawned on me and I realized that I had actually done the technique right.

"Yes!" I exclaimed, jumping around in happiness.

"Hey Karie, have you seen—Alexis!" Robin sprinted up to the three of us, a sudden fear striking him.

"Robin, I'm right—" I looked down at what was in his arms and my mouth formed an 'O'. There in his arms, was my limp, lifeless body. He turned around and jumped back.

"Alexis? What's going on? What happened? Are you a ghost?" Robin stammered, question after question.

"No, I'm not a ghost. We were just practicing a new technique," I told him. "We're suppose to separate our soul from our body."

For the first time in a while, Robin looked confused. I laughed at my accomplishment. The mighty Boy Wonder, protégé to Batman, was confused.

"How about you go back into your body, Alexis? I think you've scared Robin enough," M'gann smiled, trying hard not to giggle.

I found my heartbeat quickly and doubled over in laughter. "I can't—believe—that I-I scared you!"

Robin frowned at my amusement. "I was worried about you."

I stood up, brushing my jeans. I hugged Robin, my head resting over his shoulder. "Sorry for worrying you then."

* * *

><p><strong>Pretty short chapter, but a very important one. Anyways, I've been going on a writing spree and have written almost 2000 words for the upcoming <span>chapters<span> already.**

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	24. A Good Day

**I figure that this fic will be done in about 2-3 chapters. I'm almost done writing the last chapter and I haven't even started the one before it. Almost forgot to mention, anyone interested in drawing Alexis/Valkyrie or Karie/Kitsune? If so, pm me for a description of the character you want to draw (or draw her off the descriptions I give about her in this fic) and maybe I'll make you the illustrator for this fic and the sequel!**

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><p><strong>Washington, D.C., Hall of Justice<strong>

**December 30TH 9:16 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

The team and I stood in the Hall of Justice, watching Batman and Superman introducing the newest member of the League. Standing there with us was Icon's protégé, Rocket. Who was also standing with us in civies, Raquel.

"You know I was the one who convinced Icon to become a hero in the first place, I should be out there celebrating with him. Not trapped in here," Raquel complained.

"Welcome to our world," Kaldur smiled.

Wally started to cheer for Roy, when he was handed his League membership.

"The first one of us to make it. No one will be calling him a sidekick anymore," Robin smiled.

"Since when is being a sidekick a bad thing?" Raquel asked Robin, glancing at the 3 original team members. "You sidekicks were my inspiration."

"Well, you see 6 months ago—" Robin paused looking at his watch, a small hologram appearing from it. After his eyes ran through it, a smile broke out on his face. "Looks like we got us a mission."

* * *

><p><strong>Smokey Mountains<strong>

**December 30TH 10:48 a.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

The 9 of us rode in Miss Martian's bio ship. Robin explained to all of us how security footage caught Jade (Cheshire), board a plane carrying a mysterious briefcase.

"What's so important about that case?" Rocket asked.

"Remember the Injustice League?" Robin asked her.

"Yeah, and their giant evil plants?" Rocket said.

"Even though they are imprisoned, their allies still scheme," Aqualad said calmly. I looked down, thinking about the solo mission I'd be going on. "Whatever is in that case, is a very important part of their plans."

"Approaching Cheshire's jet," Miss Martian informed. My eyes were wide at the sight of the broken jet plane. "Looks like there were no survivors."

We all searched the wreckage trying to find any clues.

"How come Home Security and the NTSB are all over this?" Kid asked, looking at Robin for an answer.

"Cheshire's ID was a League alert, authorities didn't pick it up and the jet didn't follow its flight plan. Flew under the radar literally," Robin answered. "The Watch Tower recorded the crash."

"Then why isn't the League here?" Rocket asked.

"Because a certain Boy Wonder has some mighty hacking skills and arranged to get the alert first," I smiled, an arm resting over his shoulders.

"And because Cheshire and that case represent our unfinished business," Aqualad added. A low growl came from Kitsune, who had her fists balled up.

"How come there are no bodies?" Superboy asked, throwing a piece of the plane's wing to the side.

"Here's one," came a voice. We all turned to see Cheshire standing on the side of the cliff. "And it is stunning."

At the very top of the cliff stood Riddler, his goons surrounding us. A bunch of radars came from under the snow, surrounding us. The flashed green, before a green dome trapped us. "Ah come on. I'm shrubbery, not grass. I—?"

"Ambush," muttered Robin under his breath.

"We're tired of your interference kiddies, this is the end game," Riddler spoke with a notable lisp. "Ordered from above, and executed by their master strategist, moi."

_"Miss Martian is everyone linked?"_ Aqualad asked.

_"Yes," _Miss Martian said.

_"Go!"_ Aqualad commanded, running at a goon.

Everyone split up and found their own target. Zatanna muttered something, and suddenly a blizzard started in our battle field. I ran at a few goons, jumping, I grabbed the first one by the shoulders and stuck my legs out. I spun on the goon, knocking the other two all the while. When they were down, I flipped and kicked the goon in the face, sending him to the ground.

I saw Robin and noticed that he was slowly scaling the mountain side, up to Riddler and Shimmer. He turned and we spoke the secret language that Batman had taught us. Quiet. I swiftly knocked out the goon who sunk Aqualad with my right leg and quickly jumped up to the mountain side. I found Robin, and we ran up beside each other. We found Kitsune knocking out goons with Kid. We sent her the message, and she started to knock goons down every second.

_"SB, you're—you're flying!" _Robin gaped. I looked up to see Superboy flying, an odd green beast in one hand.

_"But I thought—"_ My thought was interrupted by a goon sneaking up behind me. I turned, but he had already thrown one of those red disks at me. I let out a blood curling scream, falling on all fours. There was this shock that surged through my whole body. I let out another scream when the voltage rose; the shocks intensified. Robin's heat signature told me that he had winded the goon easily and was now trying to get the thing off me.

"Duck," he whispered. I tried my best to, and an explosion went off over my head. The surges that were running through me a moment ago disappeared slowly. I shook my head and stood up, staggering.

_"What did you—?" _I inquired looking up at Robin. He held up a bird-a-rang, before beckoning to continue up the slope. I nodded, following the natural-born leader.

Riddler and Shimmer stood in front of us, both unaware of our presence. Robin nodded at me, and I threw two gas pellets. When they went off, I jumped over our rock and threw a bolas at her. It immediately wrapped around her, surprising her even more. Robin ran past me, and sent a booming right hook at her. When the smoke cleared, Zatanna wrapped Riddler up in a straight jacket, adding a gag when he started to complain about being Belle Reve, not Arkham.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**December 30TH 3:45 p.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

We all returned back to the cave, reporting to Batman about our success. He arrived with Black Canary and Red Tornado, a lecture ready for us.

"Tell me if this sounds familiar," Batman said. "You hacked League systems, disobeyed protocol, and endangered your lives."

We all stood before the three leaguers, some of us nervous from the rush of blood running through our heads, some of us cool, calm and collective.

"Your initiative resulted in the capture of 3 re-escaped felons, and proved that Warden Strange is running Belle Reve for criminal activity," Batman concluded. There was a brief pause when a noticeable, genuine smile broke out on Batman's face. "Well done."

I beamed, feeling proud of myself. Even Batman thought that we had done well. I looked at Robin who had one of the happiest grins on his face. I couldn't help but laugh at how happy he must've felt.

"And then there's this," Batman continued, our attention now on the case we had brought back from our mission. Inside the case were these odd 3-pointed gems, with strange lines on them. A red glow coursing through the gem every few seconds. "Bio-technology, interrogated with some form of nano circuitry."

Icon walked up from behind Batman to the case, picking up one of the gems. "Though I am unfamiliar with this species. The bio-component is clearly not of Earth."

"We'll take it to the Watch Tower for further study," Batman told us, closing the case and picking it up by the handle. After Batman, Tornado, Icon and Canary all left for the Watch Tower's Induction Party, Robin was the first to speak up.

"You realize that we were set-up?" Robin asked Aqualad.

"Yes, Cheshire and Riddler were _tipped_ and ready for us," Aqualad answered.

"Not the mole-thing again," Artemis groaned, placing a hand on her forehead.

Rocket's footsteps caused us all to face her. "Mole-thing? Again?"

"We had intel that there was a traitor on the team," Kid explained to her.

"Namely Artemis, Kitsune, Valkyrie, M'gann or me," Superboy said, pushing his way through from his spot behind everyone. His blood was coursing through him angrily, as if it shared his heated anger.

"But your recent behaviour does concern me," Aqualad said, a hand on Superboy's arm. "Your attack on Mammoth nearly got Artemis killed."

I thought back to the time when Superboy's heart suddenly started to pump out blood faster. It happened just before he got into any fight in the past few missions I've had with him. "Aqualad has a point. These past few missions with you, your heart suddenly pumps a lot more blood just before you get into the action. So adrenaline rush is no excuse."

Superboy let out a small pained groan, clenching his ears, his eyes shut tight.

"Superboy?" Aqualad asked him, not out of concern, but because he wanted an answer for his sudden change in behaviour.

"I have something to do," Was all he said, before flying out the cave with Sphere and Wolf.

* * *

><p><strong>Santa Prisca<strong>

**December 30TH 6:00 p.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

_"Guys, reinforcements time!"_ Miss Martian called.

My eyes were set on Bane as he powered up, each one of his muscle's getting stronger by the second. When he was about done from his steroids, I jumped from my perch in the trees and landed on his husky shoulders. I pulled the tube out from the back of his head, the orange content flying everywhere. Before I could jump and try out some new psychic skills, he grabbed me and sent me flying at a nearby helicopter. My back hit the steel, making my head spinning. Flashbacks of the secrets that came from our group played back in my mind.

"On Thanksgiving, I went back to Cadmus, and found out that when I was cloned, only half the DNA's was Superman's," Superboy said, sighing. "The other half is human, and that's why I don't have and never have, full Kryptonian powers."

"You sure? 'Cause you seemed to have them today," Robin asked Superboy.

"I've been using these," he said. He rolled up the sleeve of his right arm to reveal a black pentagon, kinda like the shape of the Superman symbol. "They're shields. I get the flight, the heat-vision, but I think I also get angry, well angrier. I'm sorry."

"Where did you get those?" Aqualad asked, his calm voice, now completely serious.

"From my human father, Lex Luthor," Superboy answered. Everyone's eyes widened at his answer. "He wants me to go to Santa Prisca."

"I guess this is a good time to share our part," Kitsune spoke up. She walked out of our huddled group and opened a picture of our mom. "I don't think we ever told you guys this, but our mom is a psychic. She's still in her coma as we speak, but even after our mom stopped using her powers, the Light have been obsessed with her. They use to use her to do many things for them, they could've taken over the world with her. When she stopped using her powers, she had us. But things went south, cause she fell into a comatose. Now that the Light know she's useless, they're after us."

Everyone seemed to fall into another lapse of shock, I knew, I mean, their hearts would be pumping out blood in such a disoriented pattern. I sighed, catching everyone's attention when I walked up beside my sister.

"Now for the other half to our story. When I was taken off the team last month, it was because of one thing; I was dangerous. I shared my mom's powers, but my power to talk anyone into doing anything seemed to catch the Light's attention the most. They knew that with me in their power, they could take over the world within a matter of seconds. All I had to do was say what they wanted me to say. Anyone who wouldn't fall for my words would have to face me. After all, even if they didn't listen to them, then they could force me to kill them. I could tell them to stop breathing, tell them to cut themselves. Just like a real Valkyrie, I could choose who got to live, and who was going to die," I whispered the last part, afraid that someone might drop dead. "Batman took me away so that he could train me, prepare me for the worst."

"Uh, listen. Superboy isn't the only one suffering from bad DNA," Artemis said dryly. She walked up beside us, typing away on the keyboard. Images of Huntress, Sportsmaster and Cheshire all appeared. "My mother was Huntress, an ex-con. The rest of my family aren't even ex. My dad is Sportsmaster, and he's sending my sister Cheshire to fly me to Santa Prisca too."

"That was why—"

"Yeah. I was so desperate to make sure none of you found out," Artemis cut Kid short.

"I knew," Robin said. Artemis' surprised reaction brought a small smile on his face. "Hey, I'm a detective, but it never mattered more than your family. You're one of us."

Kid walked up beside Artemis putting a hand on her shoulder. "So, who's next?"

"I am," Miss M spoke softly.

Kid's face fell at her words, his arms up beside him. "I swear I was totally kidding."

"Queen Bee's been blackmailing me. She wants me in Santa Prisca too," Miss M told us.

"Blackmailing?" Aqualad asked. "How?"

"She knows my _true_ martian form," Miss M answered.

"Bald M'gann? Who cares—"

"No," Miss M cut Robin off. She let out a sigh, before she started to transform. In place of Miss M was a huge white martian. A few gasps were heard at the sight of M'gann's true form, followed by taking a few steps away from the real M'gann. "I realized you would never accept me for who I really am."

"M'gann did we truly seem so shallow?" Aqualad asked her.

"I couldn't take the chance," M'gann answered. "Being a white martian or a lonely green on Mars, I endured constant rejection. I couldn't face that from—"

"From me," Superboy said. He walked up to M'gann and took her hand in his. _"I knew since we wound up together in September after Bialya."_

_"But that was even before we became a couple—Why didn't you say anything?"_

_"I figured you'd tell me when you were ready,"_ Superboy shrugged, glancing up at M'gann.

I opened my eyes, the world spinning before me. I noticed Bane had re-plugged that steroid tube of his, and was now walking up to me. I struggled to stand up, leaning against the helicopter for support.

"You are mine," he spat venomously.

Black Canary's training came into mind and I tried my best to talk my way out of being crushed. "Don't take another step closer, or I'll kill you."

My voice didn't do so bad. He froze momentarily, but a wicked smile appeared on his face. "Talking with that little magic of yours isn't going to work on me."

"Well then, if you're going to hurt her, I'll be the first to one to try to stop you," came the very voice that I was hoping would find me.

I heard Zatanna say something backwards. Clouds of dust exploded around Robin, leaving a Robin behind. They all ran at Bane; Bane swinging at each one.

"Gotta love an army of me," Robin's smiled. The real Robin flipped over Bane's head, pulling out his tube of power. When he landed behind Bane, he wasted no time sending his taser at Bane's weak spot. In no time, the buff villain was unconscious.

I felt Robin's arm around me, leading me to sit down by a tree. "You okay?"

"If Batman gave me a taser, then I wouldn't have slammed into a helicopter," I complained. Robin laughed at me, causing me to smile. Robin held his hand out in front of me, a knowing smile on his face. I took his hand and we quickly ran to help the others.

After taking care of the last of the villains, we gathered near the bio ship.

"It is always like this," Rocket said.

"Told ya," Zatanna smiled.

"Hey, disaster averted," Robin grinned. "Feelin' the aster."

I nudged him gently, a smile on my face from his odd grammar. I couldn't help but remember that I was suppose to start my other mission today as well. 2 times today, we met bad guys from the Injustice League to the Light and the League of Shadows.

"Agreed, today was a good day," Aqualad smiled proudly, head held high.

* * *

><p><strong>J.L.A Watch Tower<strong>

**December 30TH 11:46 p.m.**

**Vandal Savage's Pov**

I stared at the Earth, a smile upon my face. With the clone of the original Speedy, I was able to put the entire Justice League under my control. With that said, I could enter their Watch Tower without being attacked. All I have to do now is set the rest of my plans into motion. I am convinced Bailey's two little girls will come here trying to save their mentors. I stifled a laugh. They'll be walking right into my trap. Just like their mother did. All I have to figure out now is which one should I use to bring the Earth before me to its knees. It's a good thing I'm immortal, because one day after all of my tries to take over this planet will finally be accomplished. Hopefully I won't have to wait long.

* * *

><p><strong>Review, alert or fav!<strong>


	25. Good-Bye

**Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice**

**December 31ST 7:16 a.m.**

**Valkyrie's Pov**

"We have reason to feel proud after yesterday's victories," Aqualad said. I walked beside Robin, while my sister was walking beside Aqualad. "But one thing has not changed."

"Somehow, the bad guys are still getting inside intel on us," Robin said.

"Yeah, but at least we know none of us are the mole," Kid said, looking on the better side of things.

"That's correct," Batman said. He brought up a hologram of Red Arrow. "The mole was Red Arrow."

"Roy?" Robin asked, shocked by the news.

"No way!" Kid exclaimed.

"Batman, that cannot be," Aqualad argued. "He is Green Arrow's protegé, we have known him for years."

"Unfortunately, the Roy Harper we have known for the last 3 years was another Project Cadmus clone," Red Tornado said.

"We learned that the real Speedy was abducted and replaced, immediately after becoming Green Arrow's sidekick," Batman continued. "The clone was pre-programmed with a drive to join the Justice League. Which is why he was so angry over any delays to his mission, and why he refused to join the team. This Roy Harper had no idea he was a clone or a traitor. Or why his self-conscious program drove him to be so, 'League worthy'. So he struck out on his own as Red Arrow. When he was finally admitted, his secondary programming kicked in, and he attempted to betray the League to Vandal Savage."

I winced at the sound of his name and stood closer to Robin. Batman seemed to notice and held his stare on me. I knew what that meant. Today is the day.

"Fortunately, I had already deduced Red Arrow was a clone," said Batman. "We were ready."

"Savage is subdued, but Red Arrow has escaped," Tornado said. "He is now a fugitive. Armed and dangerous."

"If you guys hadn't rescued me Cadmus..." Superboy trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What-what happened to the real Roy?" Robin piped up.

"We don't know. He isn't in Cadmus," answered Batman. "We have to face the possibility that the real Roy Harper, is dead."

I grasped Robin's hand and squeezed it gently. I understood how he was feeling, and I wanted to be there for him, like he would for me.

"The clone Roy, the team will find him," Aqualad told Bats.

"Negative, Red Arrow is a member of the League now, leave him to us," Batman said calmly. There was something off though, if Batman sent me that look, then how could Savage already be subdued? "I'm needed on the Watch Tower. Tornado, stay with the kids."

_"Clone or no clone, Red Arrow was one of us," _said Aqualad, as Batman left. _"We will find him."_

"Tornado?" I asked. There was no heat running through the wires in his body any more.

_"I don't hear any moving gears in there,"_ Kitsune said, looking over at Superboy who shook his head as well.

_"He's totally powered down,"_ said KF, examining Tornado.

Robin was already plugged with him, looking through his system. _"All functions off-line."_

_"Guys, I'm sensing a low-level Mystic force at play, but I don't know if it caused his shut down,"_ Zatanna said, a hand to her temple. _"Now that I think about it, I was getting the same buzz off Batman."_

_"Batman?"_ Robin thought. _"He called us kids. He never does that."_

_"Guys, look," _Kid said. He picked up the small gem in Tornado's hand and eyed it. _"One of those bio-tech chips we confiscated off Cheshire."_

_"Something is not right,"_ Kaldur said in thought. _"Robin, Valkyrie, Kid, Zatanna, Rocket, see if you could get Tornado back online. The rest with me to find Roy—Red Arrow."_

_"The problem is hardware, not software, but where do we start?" _asked Robin.

With Miss M and Kitsune gone, I have to keep the link up for every now. I only learned a few weeks ago how mentally tiring it is.

"I have a thought," Zatanna said, looking up at Tornado's room.

After setting Tornado done on one of the stone tables we used in our mental exercise, and placing his android on the other, we started to download his brain into it.

"Downloading in progress," said Robin.

I was examining the downloading progress, when Black Canary walked in. "Hey guys, I came to check in, see how you were handling the-what are you doing to Red?!"

"It's not what it looks!" Kid quickly exclaimed.

"It looks like you're downloading his consciousness into a new body," Black Canary said, staring at the monitor behind me. How ironic to, since the download had just completed.

"Okay, so it's exactly how it looks, but—" Kid tried to cover.

"Team, get out of the cave, now!" Tornado sat up and shouted suddenly.

Canary start to use her famous 'Canary Cry' on us. Half of Tornado slammed into Kid, while his lower half knocked down Zatanna and Rocket. Robin and I hid behind the stone block, jumping on to it after she'd stopped. Robin hand springed at her, but she grabbed his arm and threw him down. I threw a bola at her, waiting for the sleeping gas to start-up. When it did, Rocket quickly formed a sphere around Canary, trapping all the gas in it. In no time, Canary was down.

"Black Canary, attacked us?" Zatanna asked in disbelief.

"Black Canary is the least of our problems," said Tornado. "We must abandon the cave."

We left the cave in a hurry on the Super Cycle (Sphere) just as Icon, Doctor Fate and Captain Marvel arrived. I had the pleasure of being seated beside Tornado, who was clinging on to the railing of the seat.

"Stay off your radium. Let the Super Cycle track Superboy. Instruct her to mask all signals, we can not allow the League to track us," Tornado told Robin, who sat up at the wheel, just behind Wolf.

"Right, of course. Just one question," Kid said. "Why is the Justice League after us?!"

"The entire League is under the complete mental domination of Vandal Savage," Tornado started to explain. My brows furrowed at the sound of his name. I didn't know if I was angry, confused or just nervous. "Red Arrow seemed to be his means. His method was something Savage referred to as 'Starro-Tech'. An alien bio-organism, infused with nano-technology and magic. It shuts down the minds autonomy, allowing Savage to reprogram the individual to suit his needs. Even my inorganic brain was not immune, but the process required 0.16 nano seconds to fully integrate with its host's nervous system. That delay allowed me to create an internal sub-program, which would disconnect my power cells if I attempted to infect another person. Fortunately, the Starro-Tech chip is specific. As John Smith, I am now free of outside control."

"This 'Starro-Tech', it worked on super-powered humans, 4 flavors of alien, an android, even Doctor Fate, defeating all of you without a fight?" Robin turned around to ask. He seemed distressed. His eyes were narrowed, and his face was hard in thought.

"Indeed, a remarkable achievement. One not easily countered," Tornado answered.

"I could try to reprogram Canary's chip though," I suggested. Everyone looked at me, thinking about my idea.

"Do it," said Robin, sending me a confident smile. Nodding back I looked at Zatanna. She seemed to understand and muttered something. Soon almost everyone on board had earplugs, except for me and Canary.

"Don't follow the orders of the Starro-Tech, and don't attack us," I started, surprised by how genuinely serious I sounded. "Until we can find a cure or vaccine, you will listen to us."

Her eyes glazed over, meaning that it had worked. I nodded for Zatanna to reverse her spell. The earplugs disappeared, and Canary was as docile as ever.

_"Miss Martian, are you in range?"_ Robin asked.

_"Here, Robin. Linking both squads and de-camouflaging,"_ replied Miss Martian.

_"Great, because we really need to compare notes,"_ said Robin.

* * *

><p><strong>J.L.A Watch Tower<strong>

**December 31ST 11:16 p.m.**

_"RT did it,"_ informed Robin. _"He wirelessly bypassed security as soon as he stepped in. Savage shouldn't know we're here."_

_"Move out,"_ said Aqualad, giving the signal.

The ten of us split into pairs, each set assigned a different Leaguer to place a cure in. Aqualad went with Rocket to find Captain Atom, Kid and Artemis to find Plastic Man, Robin and Superboy with Hawkman, Zatanna and Miss M with Atom, and Kitsune and I Hal Jordan.

I lead Kitsune in the direction of what I was guessing was him. Oddly enough, he flew into the hall. Kitsune and I hid in the shadows, waiting until he was right on spot. I was the first one to step out. I whipped a few gas pellets at him. He turned around quickly, but by then, they'd already dispersed.

"Stop flying and don't move," I whispered. My voice was deadly low and serious.

He softly landed on the ground and froze. Kitsune was already in front of him, her glowing yellow eyes stood out in the smoke. Hal's knees buckled, and Kitsune quickly placed a Starro-Cure into his neck.

_"Kitsune, Valkyrie, rendezvous with Robin and the others,"_ said Aqualad's voice.

_"On it, let's go,"_ Kitsune said.

"You go, Canary and Red need help," I told her. She seemed hesitant, but nodded and ran back down the hall.

Running slightly further down the opposite end of the hall, I paused as I eavesdropped on Savage's conversation, hiding behind a column.

"Time to go," said Savage.

"Come on, we can take'em," Klarion argued.

"Yes, but in the process you'd lose control. Perhaps even destroy this station," Savage pointed out. "Whether or not their in our way, the Light still needs the Justice League alive, for phase 2."

"I wouldn't lose control," Klarion whined. Teekl meowed in argument. "Okay yeah, I'd bring the chaos."

"I just have one last thing I need to do," Savage said. He turned in my direction, and I froze. "Come back for revenge?"

I stepped out from my place behind the column slowly. I glared at Klarion and Savage. "I'm not going to let you get the better of me."

"Is that so?" Savage smirked.

I pulled my sword from my sheath, not even sure why I was still carrying it around. Or why I chose to wear my songbird pin today either. I front-flipped towards Savage, and landed right in front of him, pointing my sword to his neck. "Stop, and tell me your plans for phase 2."

I was so confident it had worked. Klarion had already put on ear mufflers, even on Teekl. Savage's eyes glazed over, but just when I thought he was going to tell me his plans, he grabbed my arms in a bone-crushing lock. He took my sword and slammed it into the ground.

"Nice try, but I've learned all about your big mouth. Klarion," Vandal faced Klarion giving him some sort of signal.

Klarion rose his hand almost like a goodbye, a huge red and black portal appearing from behind him. When I saw the portal swallow Klarion, I knew that this was it. My solo mission started now. But not before I finished one last thing. I used soul-clone the minute the portal came towards Savage and me. I somersaulted over to my left, transparent so that I was camouflaging. Savage didn't seem to notice, since he was already gone with my physical form.

Focusing on turning solid, I looked down at my sword. I took my songbird pin off and morphed the golden pin into a thin string of gold, while the songbird dangled from it. Placing it around the hilt of my sword, I smiled at it, remembering the first time Dick had given it to me. I felt the approaching body warmth of the rest of the team and turned around, putting on a smile as Aqualad, Kid, Artemis, Zatanna and Kitsune ran in.

"Congratulations team, you have won the day," said Tornado, looking at us from his position on the ground.

I noticed Robin, Superboy, Rocket and Miss M enter the room, and quickly stood beside Robin. A blue hologram appeared before us, reading January 1 00:00 a.m.

"Happy New Year, Justice League," came the auto-mated voice.

Kid suddenly swept Artemis off her feet, literally. "I really should've done this a long time ago."

"No kidding," Artemis smiled, wrapping her arms around Kid's neck. The two of them shared a kiss, the New Years tradition. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kitsune smiling at them proudly.

Miss M and Superboy smiled at each other, before they shared their first News Years together here on Earth.

I glanced at Robin, memorizing how his hair was disheveled as always, and how he stood proudly with a smile on his face. I turned to stand in front of him, a smile stuck on my face. I placed both of my hands on Robin's shoulders and pulled him towards me for a sweet kiss. I felt him kissing back, placing his hands on my hips and pulling me closer to him. I was so happy, but the fact that I wasn't going to be able to see him again broke me. I didn't realize I was crying until we pulled away for air.

"You okay?" Robin asked, his hands still on my waist.

I nodded, smiling, hoping to make his last memory of me a smiling one.

"Tears of happiness or sadness?" he asked, looking a bit unsure.

"Both," I whimpered. The tears stung at the edge of my eyes, but I wouldn't let another tear fall. So I put on a big smile, trying to look happier than I really was. "I have to go. Well, I'm already gone."

His face fell, from confusion and a bit of hurt. Why didn't I think about it before? How guilty I'd be when this moment would come? How much I was really going to hurt Dick? "Where are you going?"

"I actually don't know, I just hope I come back soon," I answered, placing a hand over the R of his uniform. Robin. A thought came into mind, and I looked up at him, wishing so badly that he wasn't wearing his domino mask. I couldn't see those misty-blue eyes one last time. "Could you do me a favor?"

"What is it?" he asked curiously.

"Smile. I want to see that signature smirk," _one last time,_ I almost said.

"What are you talking about—"

"Please?" I begged, my voice almost inaudible.

His eyes softened, and looked like he was thinking almost. When he smiled, I couldn't help but burn the memory into my head, and the feeling of happiness when I saw it. I gave Dick a real genuine, content smile too. I could see how happy he was, when I did.

My last few minutes of happiness came to an end when I felt my physical form become more distant. This was it. I was going to be alone for who knows how long. No more Karie, the team, Alfred's cookies, rare Bruce/Bats moments, and most importantly, no more Dick Grayson. "Goodbye Dick. Don't forget to stay whelmed!"

I felt myself let go and disappear, finding my physical form and returning to it. I guess the worst part was that the last thing I saw was Dick's fallen face.

Some good-bye, right?

* * *

><p><strong>I don't think I've ever written anything more heartfelt, heart aching and as sad as the end of this chapter.<strong>

**Review, alert and fav!**


	26. Missing You

**Just if you guys didn't know before, the cover photo of this fanfic is Alexis' songbird necklace. By the way, I'm still looking for people to do some fan art for this fanfic too. Anyways, enjoy!**

* * *

><p><strong>J.L.A. Watch Tower<strong>

**January 1ST 12:06 a.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

What just happened? A second ago, I could've sworn that Valkyrie had just kissed me. Then I saw a bright light and suddenly Zatanna appears, waving her hand in front of me.

"Robin, you okay?" she asked, her eyes filled with worry.

"Fine," I answered in a monotone voice.

_"Goodbye, Dick. Don't forget to stay whelmed!" _The memory of Valkyrie's words confused me to no end. What does she mean by _good__bye_? I closed my eyes trying to remember what had really happened.

_A screen popped up in front of our group of tired, injured heroes. It read New Year, with the date and time below._

_"I should've done this a long time ago," KF said, swooping up Artemis into his arms._

_"No kidding," Artemis joked. With the New Years tradition, they kissed each other._

_Miss M and Superboy looked at each other, a smile on their faces. They kissed too, celebrating their first New Years together._

_Valkyrie stood beside me, her hair a bit disheveled, but she looked beautiful in my eyes. She faced me and smiled at me, putting her hands on my shoulders and pulling me in for a sweet kiss. I melted into the kiss, placing my hands on her waist pulling her closer to me. The butterflies that flew in my stomach were trying to escape, but were stuck in my throat for air. I felt something wet fall on my suit, then another, and another. When we broke for air, I looked down to see small droplets of water on my suit. Looking back at Valkyrie, she was crying._

_"You okay?" I asked her, my hands still on her waist. My cheeks were probably red from the closeness. __She nodded, smiling, but there was something that was holding her back from the smile reaching her eyes. "Tears of happiness or sadness?"_

_"Both," she whimpered. It looked like she was really going to cry a waterfall now, but she wouldn't let another tear fall. She put on a big smile, trying to look happier than she really was. "I have to go. Well, I'm already gone._

_My face fell, from confusion and a bit of hurt. "Where are you going?"_

_"I actually don't know, I just hope I come back soon," she answered. "Could you do me a favor?"_

_"What is it?" You know I would do anything for you, I almost added._

_"Smile. I want to see that signature smirk," she told me._

_"What are you talking about—"_

_"Please?" she begged, her voice almost inaudible._

_My eyes softened, but I was a bit curious about why she would ask me about a favor like this. I looked at Valkyrie and decided that if a smirk is what she wanted, why not? She shot me a genuine one too, seeming very happy and pleased._

_"Goodbye Dick. Don't forget to stay whelmed!"_

Her tear-stained smiling face was the last thing I saw, when it all went white. Her smiling face was the last thing I saw _again_.

A loud whimper of some sort came from behind us; Kitsune was on the verge of crying.

"Kitsune, what happened?" Artemis asked, running up to her friend, while Miss M flew to her side.

"Valkyrie—Alexis," Kitsune choked out. Her hand shakily rose and was pointing at one thing; Valkyrie's sword.

All of us walked closer to the sword trying to get a better view and a clue about what Kitsune was talking about. Valkyrie's sword was stuck in the concrete floor of the tower. What surprised me was the little songbird hanging on a gold string around the hilt of the sword. It dawned to me what had really just happened. Valkyrie had disappeared. Without a trace, all she leaves us is her sword and the songbird I made her. I fell to my knees, and my hand reached out for the songbird. After examining it for who knows how long, I confirmed that it was most definitely the one that I'd made for her.

She couldn't really be gone could she? I looked to my right to see Kitsune still crying over the disappearance of her sister. Alexis told me that they have this special psychic connection thing being sisters and all. If Alexis was really gone, Kitsune wouldn't be crying like a mess right now.

"Miss Martian?" I asked, my voice quiet and filled with small hope. She shook her head sadly; no trace of Alexis' presence either.

I slammed my fist into the ground, the concrete shattering under my fist, probably from all the years of punching wacko's in the face. This couldn't be happening. Alexis was here a moment ago. We kissed, talked, she left in a blur... How could she have been gone already? I slammed my fist a second time, creating a bigger indent in the floor. As I rose my hand for a third one, a hand was on my shoulder.

"Slamming your fist in the ground won't bring her back," Zatanna's voice echoed.

My fist opened, curling around the necklace. Looking at it one more time, the memory of Alexis on her birthday appeared in my mind. She was smiling, wearing that dress of hers, her haired curled, the songbird pin securely in her hair. _I will find you_, _and I **will** bring you back.___ I mentally promised to myself. I stood, turning to face everyone. I walked through them, remembering that we still had a mission to finish. When we are going to have a meeting, I will definitely bring up Alexis' disappearance, and I'll make sure that we get a mission to find her.

A few leaguers sat with me, Kitsune and Aqualad; this news that Batman and I had found important for everyone to hear.

"While under the control of Vandal Savage, 6 leaguers, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Hawk Woman, and Martian Manhunter, all disappeared for 16 hours. What happened in those 16 hours is still unknown," I said. I turned to type away on the blue keyboard, an image of Valkyrie and her alter ego Alexis now taking the place of the images of the leaguers. "On the other note, one of our team mates Valkyrie, disappeared just before New Years. The thing is, I remember Valkyrie with me. We were celebrating the New Year with the rest of the team. In a matter of seconds though, she disappeared in front of me, a bright light obscuring my vision. From what Kitsune tells us, and this video footage, Valkyrie was kidnapped minutes before New Years day by Vandal and Klarion. The only thing left behind was her sword and her songbird."

My voice died down the more I explained about my kidnapped girlfriend.

"I think I should be the first to say something about her disappearance, after all she was the one who confronted me with this," Black Canary took out an envelope from the inside of her jacket. She gave it to me and told me to read it out loud. "Alexis gave it to me. Said she wanted to be able to get her last words out."

I held the envelope and stared at the neatly written Good-Bye on it. "When did she write this, and when did she give it to you?"

"She gave it to me on Christmas, but I think that she wrote the actual letter after the failed mission," Black Canary guessed.

I opened it, careful not to damage the evidence. Written in her perfect handwriting, I started to read her letter.

"Dear Everyone,

By the time you're reading this, I'm probably gone. I don't want anyone of you to grieve over me for a long period of time, alright? You know how much I hate it when people cry or are sad. Smiling is better. Anyways in this letter I just wanted to write a few of the things I know I won't be able to say once I'm gone. For starters, Karie once dad is out and mom is awake make sure to stay positive. I love you mom, dad and Karie. Thanks Bruce, for caring for Karie and I, oh and Alfred too. Alfred, your cooking was the best. Wally, Artemis, try not to fight so much. Then again, watching the two of you argue always brought a smile to my face. I'm gonna miss that. Kaldur, I always looked up to you as an older brother. Thank you for teaching me so much. Connor, Wolf, Sphere, there was always something to do in the cave with you guys there. I'm gonna miss playing around. M'gann, that grilled cheese you made me was delicious. Yum. Thanks for being there for me when I needed help for that date with that jerk." I paused, there was a guilt building up inside me.

"Do you remember the first time we met? I know I'll never forget it. If I never met you, my life would be so different. I would've never have gotten this songbird pin from you. It means a lot to me. Why? Maybe because you gave it to me. Maybe I feel like your always there when I wear it. I like both reasons. Although I still wonder why you gave it to me in the first place. When you first gave it to me, I thought you gave it to me as a gift to a friend, but after the incident with Alfred walking in on us, I started to think that you might share the same feelings that I have for you." I stopped for a while after reading that paragraph. It was about me. The first time we met, the songbird pin, Alfred... It killed me to not where she was with Klarion and Savage. Who knows what they could be doing to her? Through gritted teeth I continued.

"What confused me though was that I had just gone on my first date with Shane the day before. He tried to kiss me, but I pushed him away, telling him that I've never had a first kiss before. Which was true, but in all honesty, it was because the idea of kissing Shane just didn't feel right. I guess I might as well quit stalling and get right to the point, I love you Robin. I might never get the chance to say those words to you one day, so I'm writing it in this letter. I guess the most disappointing part of all of this is that I'll never get to know if you love me back.

I hope you all live well, best regards from yours truly, Alexis Dilan Henderson."

The eery silence in the meeting room, made me tense. The last paragraph was all about me and Alexis. I guess my heart should've been beating happily to know that she loved me, and I should've been blushing, but I was the exact opposite. I was angry, mad, disappointed and upset... with myself. I never got to tell her that I did love her back, or why I actually made that pin for. She would never know that I loved her back until I found her. She would never know...

Black Canary, Red Arrow, and Green Arrow excused themselves to take Red back to Oliver's mansion, leaving Aqualad, Batman, Aquaman, Flash, Kitsune and me in the debriefing room.

"Batman, I think that we should go after Klarion and Vandal. It seems like the only way to get Valkyrie back," Aqualad stated, looking directly at Batman for a reply, not for permission.

"With Klarion's magic, he could've taken her to a different dimension. There would be no way for us to enter. If he didn't, then Vandal might've taken her to his home," Batman replied. "We don't have a single location of Vandal's home, but her vital signs still seem to be working."

"So she's alive, but there's no way to get her, unless the witch boy or Vandal brings her out into the open?" Flash asked, pointing out Batman's obvious words.

"Batman, I could—"

"We will wait for them to bring her into the open, like Flash said, and will keep track of her vital signs," Batman said. I stared at him quizzically. Batman just cut me off. "Until further notice, we will not make another move."

Batman made it obvious what he meant. He wasn't going to risk losing another hero to our enemies. I clenched my fists and stormed out of the debriefing room, needing to get a lot of air. I stood staring out at the Earth, from one of the many windows along the corridors. I ran a hand through my hair, trying to think straight. Alexis was probably somewhere on Earth, waiting for someone to save her. Waiting for someone like _me_ to save her. I gritted my teeth in frustration. Where would I even start looking for her? I was too focused on finding her that I didn't even notice Batman standing beside me until he started to talk.

"You're distraught. When you're distraught you act on impulse, forgetting the major details," Batman said.

I frowned. This was one of the many lessons I learned over the years of training under Batman's wings. "How can I not be?"

"Alexis can take of herself," Batman said calmly.

"I know, but we can't just wait for Vandal or Klarion to make a move, they might—"

"They might destroy the world," Batman finished for me, even though that wasn't what I meant to say. "If we don't wait and try to make a move, they might end up destroying her."

My lips tightened, forming a small line. I hated when Batman bested me in words. "Then what can I do, other than waiting?"

"You need some time off. So does Karie," Batman sighed. His head turned, his eyes staring right at my domino mask. "I know what the two of you are going through right now. The loss of someone we care about."

"She's still alive! You even said it yourself, her vitals are still working," I corrected Batman, raising my voice even.

"Well we know what it's like to not be able to see a person we care about anymore," Batman re-worded. "and we all know that we have to learn to cope until we find a spark again." Batman turned to leave, giving me some space.

I found my way to the main room, the lone sword planted in the middle of it. The pain and guilt washed through me again. _I should've been there for you._ Walking up to it once again, I picked it up, sliding the gold necklace off of its hilt.

"She used Soul Clone."

Miss Martian flew beside me, landing softly on the floor. "Ever since that day she scared you, she's been practicing on staying in that form for a long period of time. It looks like she even managed to materialize and use her powers too." Miss M gestured to the necklace in my hands. It was a pin when I gave it to her, but she changed it to a necklace in the last 16 minutes. "I know I wasn't suppose too, but I read her thoughts one time when she was training. The one thought that kept her going for so long was 'Next time Robin sees me like this, he won't worry. After all, I've been training.' She always had a smile on her face when she was training."

I smiled at Miss M's story. That's my Alexis for you. Willing to make anyone happy and smile, even if she isn't in such a great mood herself. "Thanks Miss Martian." A new question dawned to me after her story though.

"Miss M?" I called.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

"If Alexis left her songbird pin from her materialized form, what would happen to the real physical one with her body?" I asked her, raising my eyebrows.

"When we were training, Kitsune took off her bandana one time while she was materialized. She gave it to me to hold, but she returned to her body without it on," Miss Martian told me. "The strangest part though was that after she did, the bandana on her body disappeared and the one in my hands glowed for a few seconds. It turned out that whatever you leave behind in their materialized form, a piece of hair, a weapon, a bandana, a _necklace_, the one from your real body follows it."

I nodded a thanks. Miss M gave me a small smile, before flying away again, adding that Karie already left for Earth.

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><p><strong>Happy Harbor, Mt. Justice<strong>

**January 1ST 12:16 a.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

I stood in Wally's Souvenir room, gazing at his collection. Each souvenir represented a mission that we went on as a team. I placed Valkyrie's sword beside Sportsmaster's mask. Even though Wally didn't pick this souvenir, it felt right to know that a part of her would still be remembered in the cave.

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><p><strong>Gotham City, Bat Cave<strong>

**January 1ST 12:19 a.m.**

**Robin's Pov**

I found a display case and put it beside my old Robin uniform. I placed the songbird necklace gently in it, about to place the glass case over it when I remembered something. I opened up my gloved computer, typing in a certain pass code. The songbird's eye shone a bit, signaling that it was on. I watched the last video footage that the camera had taken.

Valkyrie hand springed before front-flipping to land right in front of Vandal. Instead of trying to land a blow though, she started to talk, "Stop and tell me your plans for phase 2."

It almost worked on Vandal, his eyes almost becoming glazed over like Black Canary's. Almost. He caught her by the shoulders and squeezed them to the point where they would've crushed.

"Nice try, but I've learned all about your big mouth. Klarion," Vandal faced Klarion giving him some sort of signal.

Klarion rose his hand almost like a goodbye, a huge red and black portal appearing from behind him. When I saw the portal swallow Klarion, she quickly used Soul Clone to jump out-of-the-way. The camera went black for a few seconds when it was aimed down at Valkyrie's sword. The clip was moved and soon I could see Valkyrie's face. She was concentrating on something. A smile spread across her face, as if recalling a memory, as she gently placed it around the hilt of her sword, before she walked up to the rest of the team.

Turning the camera off for the first time, I carefully put the case over it. I changed out of my uniform and into some civvies. Alfred and Karie were no where in the manor, but it didn't bother me. I had one more thing to take care of before I went to bed. Or well, at least try too.

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><p><strong>Any guesses on what that one last thing he has to take care of is?<strong>

**Review, alert or fav!**


	27. And Now You Know

**The last chapter of Songbird's Cry. Man, it's been one long year. Oh, and guess who I dressed up as on Halloween (I'm so late). He has black hair, blue eyes, a bit of an anger issue, super strength... it's Superboy! On a random note, how do you all say Karie? I meant for it to be pronounced as Carey. Let me know in your reviews, and if you wouldn't mind doing some fan art? I really hope you guys enjoy the last chapter of Songbird's Cry.**

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><p><strong>?<strong>

**January 1ST 12:06 a.m.**

**Alexis' Pov**

The first thing that I noticed when I came to, was that I was in a completely white room. The second thing that I noticed was that I was sitting on a bed. The last thing that I noticed was that Savage and Klarion were standing right in front of me.

"Where did you bring me?" I asked, confused by the neat room.

"You are a guest, this will be your room from now on," Savage said. A guest? My own room? I thought I was going to be thrown in a cell. Savage must've noticed my confusion because he continued. "You will serve under the Light. I am assigned to take care of you and train you. If you disobey, then I am free to punish you."

I nodded, afraid of what type of punishment he would give me. The satisfied smile on his scarred face, made me feel even more uncomfortable. Savage nodded, explaining to me where everything could be found in my new room.

"You will receive your meals daily, all 3 courses. The bathroom is to your left. Beside the book-case beside the bathroom is your own walk-in closet with new clothes. Lastly, the door on your right," Savage paused, a sadistic smile growing on his face. "I'll let you venture in there for yourself."

"Pft, I can't believe they made you treat her like a princess," Klarion scoffed. Teekl mewed loudly, Klarion agreeing with him. "Let's go, I don't want to be stuck in this place with her either."

Klarion walked through the wall in front of me, Savage following him. The wall glowed green when they passed through, but suddenly glowed an evil red. Klarion probably locked me in here.

The first thing I did was jump off the bed I was dumped on, and ran to door on my right. Hesitantly, I turned the knob and slowly walked in. To my surprise, there was an old-fashioned red Victorian chair sitting in the middle of the room. It looked almost like the one in Dick's special room. I found the light switch to the room, turning the lights on. The room was empty, minus the chair and the flat screen tv that hung on the wall in front of it. Oddly enough though, the tv was on. I took a seat in the Victorian chair and took off my cowl. My eyes were staring up at the screen.

I saw Aqualad and Kitsune sitting in a debriefing room, with some leaguers. I saw Robin sitting at the end of the long table, a hologram of me behind him.

"On the other note, one of our team mates Valkyrie, disappeared just before New Years. The thing is, I remember Valkyrie with me. We were celebrating the New Year with the rest of the team. In a matter of seconds though, she disappeared in front of me, a bright light obscuring my vision. From what Kitsune tells us, and this video footage, Valkyrie was kidnapped minutes before New Years Day by Vandal and Klarion. The only thing left was her sword and her songbird."

I felt my heart being torn. I let out a small gasp, trying to hold in the tears. Robin looked so frustrated, confused, and so different. _He's probably worrying about me so much. _A tear slipped out from my left eye, followed by a few more from either eye. "I'm so sorry, Robin."

The TV started to glow red along the frame, and the camera was aimed directly at Robin. Some more of that weird witch boy's magic, I guessed. Although I guess I should've thanked him for at least leaving me with some of my old life.

"I think I should be the first to say something about her disappearance, after all she was the one who confronted me with this," Black Canary took out an envelope from the inside of her jacket. She gave it to Robin and told him to read it out loud. "Alexis gave it to me. Said she wanted to be able to get her last words out."

The letter. I'm glad that Canary remembered. I watched as Robin examined the envelope, before asking Canary when I wrote it, and when I gave it to her.

"She gave it to me on Christmas, but I think that she wrote the actual letter after the failed mission," Black Canary guessed.

I watched Robin open it, careful not to damage the letter. After taking the letter out, he unfolded it and started to read.

"Dear Everyone,

By the time you're reading this, I'm probably gone. I don't want anyone of you to grieve over me for a long period of time, alright? You know how much I hate it when people cry or are sad. Smiling is better. Anyways in this letter I just wanted to write a few of the things I know I won't be able to say once I'm gone. For starters, Karie once dad is out and mom is awake make sure to stay positive. I love you mom, dad and Karie. Thanks Bruce, for caring for Karie and I, oh and Alfred too. Alfred, your cooking was the best. Wally, Artemis, try not to fight so much. Then again, watching the two of you argue always brought a smile to my face. I'm gonna miss that. Kaldur, I always looked up to you as an older brother. Thank you for teaching me so much. Connor, Wolf, Sphere, there was always something to do in the cave with you guys there. I'm gonna miss playing around. M'gann, that grilled cheese you made me was delicious. Yum. Thanks for being there for me when I needed help for that date with that jerk."

Robin paused, staring down at the letter. I froze, sniffling a bit. I remembered what I wrote next. It was all about him. A blush came to face when he started to read.

"Do you remember the first time we met? I know I'll never forget it. If I never met you, my life would be so different. I would've never have gotten this songbird pin from you. It means a lot to me. Why? Maybe because you gave it to me. Maybe I feel like your always there when I wear it. I like both reasons. Although I still wonder why you gave it to me in the first place. When you first gave it to me, I thought you gave it to me as a gift to a friend, but after the incident with Alfred walking in on us, I started to think that you might share the same feelings that I have for you."

My eyes were trying hard to focus on Robin, but the tears made it hard. Memories of the first time I met him, the songbird, even when Alfred interrupted us replayed in my mind. I hugged myself, trying to ease the pain. It wasn't the same when Dick wrapped his arms around me, with his warming and mischievous vanilla scent.

"What confused me though was that I had just gone on my first date with Shane the day before. He tried to kiss me, but I pushed him away, telling him that I've never had a first kiss before. Which was true, but in all honesty, it was because the idea of kissing Shane just didn't feel right. I guess I might as well quit stalling and get right to the point, I love you Robin. I might never get the chance to say those words to you one day, so I'm writing it in this letter. I guess the most disappointing part of all of this is that I'll never get to know if you love me back.

I hope you all live well, best regards from yours truly, Alexis Dilan Henderson."

Robin was still, besides the fact that he had tightened his grip on the fragile piece of paper. Black Canary, Red Arrow, and Green Arrow excused themselves to take Red back to Oliver's mansion, leaving Aqualad, Batman, Aquaman, Flash, Kitsune and Robin in the debriefing room.

"Batman, I think that we should go after Klarion and Vandal. It seems like the only way to get Valkyrie back," Aqualad stated, looking directly at Batman for a reply, not for permission.

"With Klarion's magic, he could've taken her to a different dimension. There would be no way for us to enter. If he didn't, then Vandal might've taken her to his home," Batman replied. "We don't have a single site of Vandal's home, but her vital signs still seem to be working."

"I don't even know where I am," I whispered to myself.

"So she's alive, but there's no way to get her, unless the witch boy or Vandal brings her out into the open?" Flash asked, pointing out Batman's obvious words.

"Batman, I could—"

"We will wait for them to bring her into the open, like Flash said, and will keep track of her vital signs," Batman said. Robin looked at Batman suspiciously. Batman had just cut him off from a rescue that would've gotten me out of this place. A part of me wished that Batman listened and agreed to it, but the other part understood why Batman stopped Robin's attempts; he was trying to buy me some time to gather intel. "Until further notice, we will not make another move."

I watched as the scenery changed. Now I could see Robin storming down a corridor in the Watch Tower. He stopped and turned to look at the Earth. As if on cue, Batman appeared beside his protégé.

"You're distraught. When you're distraught you act on impulse, forgetting the major details," Batman said.

Robin frowned. This was one of the first lessons I learned from training under Batman's wings. "How can I not be?"

"Alexis can take of herself," Batman said calmly.

"I know, but we can't just wait for Vandal or Klarion to make a move, they might—"

"They might destroy the world," Batman finished. "If we don't wait and try to make a move, they might end up destroying her."

His lips tightened, forming a small line. I felt myself grow even smaller. There was that word again. **Destroy**. "Then what can I do, other than waiting?"

"You need some time off. So does Karie," Batman sighed. His head turned, his eyes staring right at Robin. "I know what the two of you are going through right now. The loss of someone we care about."

"She's still alive! You even said it yourself, her vitals are still working," Robin corrected Batman, even raising his voice. I wanted to jump through the screen right then and there and hug the death out of Robin. He's still fighting for me. The tears wouldn't stop flowing out of my eyes. The pain, the guilt, the idea of hurting Dick like this. It was so much to just take in.

"Well we know what it's like to not be able to see a person we care about anymore," Batman re-worded. "and we all know that we have to learn to cope until we find a spark again." Batman left to give some time for Robin to think.

Wanting to get my head off Robin (if that was even possible) I said another name. "Karie."

I watched the TV glow a faint red again, the screen warped to a whole other scenery. Karie was walking down a long white, clean hall. I could see Alfred following behind her, a tad on edge. Karie held something in her hand. It was her old guitar. She stopped to open a door, telling Alfred that she would prefer that he come in with her. Walking into the room, I noticed the familiar vase of flowers sitting on the nightstand. Lying in the bed was my soundless mom. Karie pulled up a stool beside her bed and placed her guitar against the nightstand. She grabbed one of mom's hands and ran her thumb over it.

"Hey mom, long time no see," Karie started, a small smile on her face. It disappeared soon, Karie's head falling. "Alexis, is well you see—"

Karie's head shot up, staring at mom's hand. I leaned a bit closer to the screen trying to see what had happened. A twitch of a finger. Not Karie's either.

"Mom," I whispered, not sure if what I was thinking was really happening. It looks like the magical T.V had acute hearing, because the view was now at mom's face. Her eyelids were moving rapidly, as if she was having a dream. Or maybe a nightmare. She suddenly took a gasp of air and her eyes flew open.

"Mom!" Karie exclaimed jumping from her seat.

"Blaire," Mom spoke calmly. She sat up from her "Is Alexis really—?"

Karie nodded, her head lowering once more. "I'm sorry I couldn't save her."

Mom wrapped her arms around Karie, comforting her. "It's not your fault." Mom noticed Alfred standing in the room and introduced herself.

"I'm Alfred Pennyworth," Alfred said, bowing. "I'm sorry about your daughter."

"Mom, how'd you know that Alexis was gone?" Karie asked.

"Psimon showed me everything that happened. He even told me what they're going to do to her," Mom answered.

"Well, spit it out! I have to alert everyone else about your news too!" Karie exclaimed, waving her hands frantically.

"They plan on programming her into a whole new person. Her memories, name, birthday, looks, but not her personality," Mom glared at the bed sheets. They were going to turn me into their own little toy? It probably hasn't even been an hour since my mission started! I didn't even get time to get some intel! Then the fact that I just let Vandal take me... Everything went down the drain. Batman's plan, my sacrifice. I felt my heart beat quickening and my breath shortening. _A ticking time bomb. Destroy the world. _"Without any memories of us, and replaced with fake new ones, she'll literally be under their control."

"Just like Batman said before..." Karie muttered under her breath.

"Karie, why do you have a guitar with you?" Mom asked, trying to change the topic.

"I was planning on playing you one of Alexis' favourite songs. My Song. The song's her favourite because the lyrics were so meaningful to her," Karie explained, a sad smile on her face. She picked up her old acoustic guitar and took out a white guitar pick that I've never seen before. She looked down at it, as if she was reading off of it.

"Karie," I whispered. I could see the guitar pick in Karie's hand, even able to read the gold etched in it. 'For those special times.' I wonder when she got the pick? She placed her guitar comfortably in her lap and started to strum. The memories of the first time I sang the song flashed through my eyes. "The Boy Wonder."

Said Boy Wonder stood in Wally's Souvenir room, gazing at his collection. Each souvenir represented a mission that we went on as a team. He placed my sword beside Sportsmaster's mask, even though Wally was supposed to be in charge of which souvenirs represented each mission the best.

I watched as the Boy Wonder zeta-tubed to the Bat Cave. He walked past many of Batman's collectibles and opened his secret door. Closing it softly, he began searching for something. He found a display case and put it beside his old Robin uniform. I watched as he placed the songbird necklace gently in it, about to place the glass case over it when he stopped. He opened up his gloved computer, typing in a certain pass code. The songbird's eye shone a bit strangely. Some type of video footage started to play on the holographic screen. My eyes widened when the footage finished. My hands patted my brown and red locks, searching for the familiar hair pin. The results of my attempts were useless. _That theory really does work,_ I sighed.

Robin turned his gloved computer off, before he carefully put the glass case over the songbird. He changed out of his uniform and into some civvies, heading upstairs. I watched, not forgetting a single detail of him. His disheveled, sleek, soft black hair, those blue eyes... They looked so sad now. The little glow in them was gone, as Dick walked up the stairs to the bedrooms. Surprisingly though, instead of turning left to his room, he turned right. He opened the door to the room that I called mine for the past 4 months. He walked through the room slowly, looking around at everything. At one point I could've sworn that he inhaled the air in the room. His tensed, lean muscles relaxed afterwards. I wonder what calmed him? He stopped to look at my bed, a small smile on his face. I smiled, thinking the same thing. I'd pushed him off my bed the time I found him sleeping beside me. I wish I hadn't pushed him out, I wouldn't have mined sleeping in his arms for a few more hours. He found his way on to my balcony. The same balcony where I fell asleep on, and the same one where Dick always found me. I felt a small blush on my face, but I let out a small laugh. I still remember his cheeks heating up when I thanked him. I was half-asleep in his arms bridal-style.

Dick walked up to the edge of the balcony, resting his arms on the stone ledge. He stared out at Gotham. From my balcony, you could see most of it until apartment buildings blocked everything else. He looked up at the clear night sky, the moon a white crescent in the sky.

"Hey, Alexis," he said. My eyes widened and I got off my seat. "Why'd you let Vandal take you?"

A strangled gasp or a whimper came out of my throat. I knew he couldn't see me or hear me, but I answered as if I was standing on that balcony with him. "I can't tell you."

"I know you could've gotten out of his grip, so why didn't you?" he asked. He almost seemed to be begging for answers.

"Because, I just couldn't." It was a cowardly answer, but if he knew Batman sent me to do this, Dick would flip.

He sighed. "In that letter you wrote, the last two paragraphs. They were about us weren't they?"

I nodded. I would've Soul Cloned to him right then and there, but I didn't even know how to get from wherever I was to Gotham. Another idea forged in my mind though. I closed my eyes, holding a hand up to the TV. I searched for that familiar warmth. Out of seven billion people, his was easy to find. I opened up my mind to his and soon we were standing in my mind. It was a white room with golden picture frames along the walls. Each one of them were playing a different memory of mine. At the top of the room hung a glass chandelier, each shard reflecting a different memory as well. It gave the shards a shimmering appearance, providing light for the room.

Focusing my attention back to reality, the tears welled up in my eyes again. I tackled Dick with a hug, the tears flowing freely from my eyes.

"Alexis? How are you—?"

"I have psychic abilities, remember? Or did you already start to forget about me?" I cut him off, pulling away. I stared at him, a bit hurt. He seemed confused for a moment when he realized what I had said.

"N-no, no! Of course I didn't forget! How could I when you're all I can think about?" he said, pulling me back into his embrace. I snuggled into him, loving that vanilla scent.

"That's so cheesy," I commented. I let out a small laugh and buried my face into the crook of his neck. "but sweet."

Suddenly, Dick had his hands on my shoulders and was asking question after question. "Do you know where you are? Did Vandal, or Klarion do anything to you? Your not hurt are you? Where are they keeping you? Did they say anything to you?"

"No, no, not really, in a big white room, and that I'm going to be trained and cared for by Vandal," I answered all of his questions. "There are some other things too..."

"Like?" Dick asked. I looked up at him, his eyes were big and curious like a puppies. The corners of my lips curled up.

"There's this one room, that connects to mine where there's a TV. Whenever I say someone's name, the TV will show me the person and what they're doing," I said. My eyes found their way to my feet, thinking about how Dick might react to the next part. "I saw my mom, Karie and Alfred. My mom, she woke up from her comatose, but only because Psimon released her. He told her what they were going to do to me."

Dick squeezed my shoulders gently, but the message was clear. I looked up at him, my eyes struggling to look into his. "Alexis. What did Psimon say?"

His serious tone forced me to look into those blue orbs. "They're going to reprogram me. New name, birth date, looks, even memories, but not my personality. Probably a bittersweet thing. With a whole new me, specially created to their liking, I'll literally be under their control." I repeated it the same way my mom did.

Dick was quiet. "Do you know how much time you have left?"

I shook my head sadly. "I just came here to do one last thing, before I forget."

I hooked my arms around Dick's neck and pulled him in for a long, sweet, goodbye kiss. I rested my head against his chest one more time for air. When I finally caught my breath, I said those three words everyone wants to hear. "I love you."

A hand forced my chin gently upwards, and I was greeted with Dick's lips. This kiss wasn't like our last one though. This one was filled with different feelings and emotions. Not to mention one last promise. _I'll find you, and bring you back home._ When we faced each other again, I nodded, letting him know that I knew he wouldn't disappoint me. I'm glad that Dick managed to get a few last words to me before it all went black.

"I love you," he told me, wearing his signature smirk and a faint blush. My heart swelled, feeling like it was going to explode. He loved me back. Dick loved me back.

"And now you know."

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><p><strong>The end! I almost feel like crying. I've had so much fun writing this fanfic. I want to say thanks to some people though.<strong>

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**Well there you have it, and; SEQUEL ANYONE?**

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**That's all for now, see you all soon hopefully. Keep checking on my profile, and see if I have a fic that I'm working on, 'cause you never know, it might just be the sequel* -amazoness23 **

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><p><strong>Sequel is now up everyone, and it's called Crazy Challenge 2! So hurry and go read it! -amazoness23<strong>


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